This article first appeared on 27 April, 2020 on Kill Your Darlings (KYD), one of Australia’s leading arts and culture magazines.By 9pm on 9 May, 2018, the results of the Malaysian general election are just beginning to become clear. My family friend Sham, her two twin daughters and I abandon a shopping trip in Kuala Lumpur once the first results begin to trickle in. We need to be where the action is.

A staunch Muslim nationalist backed by a scandal-mired party was sworn in as Malaysia's premier Sunday after a reformist government's collapse, but ex-leader Mahathir Mohamad, 94, slammed the move as illegal.The Southeast Asian nation was plunged into turmoil after Mahathir's "Pact of Hope" alliance, which stormed to a historic victory in 2018, collapsed amid bitter infighting.Mahathir, who was the world's oldest leader, initially quit as premier but then sought

Malaysia's political crisis deepened Saturday after 94-year-old Mahathir Mohamad rejected a decision by the king to pick his rival as the next prime minister, insisting he had enough backing to return to the role.Ex-interior minister Muhyiddin Yassin was earlier named for the job by the monarch, who appoints the country's premiers after deciding who has backing from MPs, signalling a defeat for Mahathir and the return of a scandal-plagued party to power.It capped a week of turmoil t

Malaysia was plunged into a bitter power struggle Wednesday as Mahathir Mohamad sought to form a unity government following his shock resignation, but old foe Anwar Ibrahim also pushed to become premier.The developments deepened a crisis that began when the ruling coalition - which included both men when it stormed to a historic poll victory in 2018 - fell apart after a failed bid to establish a new government without Anwar.Anwar was Mahathir's designated successor, but he would likely h

Malaysia's government has collapsed after the resignation of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, which followed a failed bid by rivals to form a new coalition aimed at stopping leader-in-waiting Anwar Ibrahim from succeeding him.Mahathir, 94, the world's oldest leader, has been appointed interim leader while intense political jockeying is underway to form a new government.Here are some details about the political crisis and what could happen next: How did events unfold?The rul

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad resigned Monday in a shock move as his alliance that came to power less than two years ago unravelled, but he was reappointed as interim leader by the king.It came after months of rising tensions in his "Pact of Hope" coalition, which toppled a corruption-mired government in 2018, and as some manoeuvre to block the ascent of leader-in-waiting Anwar Ibrahim.But there were calls for Mahathir, the world's oldest leader at 94, to stay in of

Malaysia has seen a long period of speculation from a large portion of the public that Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad would never hand over the prime ministerial position to his nemesis-turned-ally Anwar Ibrahim.

Malaysian Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, at 94 the world's oldest leader, submitted his resignation to the king on Monday, his office said, after a bid by his political partners to bring down the government.Dr Mahathir "has sent a resignation letter as prime minister of Malaysia", said a statement from his office. – AFP 

Local media in Malaysia recently reported that Malaysian United Indigenous Party (Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia) Youth executive council member, Muhammad Muzammil Ismail as urging the country’s Muslim youth to play a more active role in overcoming Islamophobia. Speaking to Malaysia’s national news agency, Bernama, ahead of the Youth Kuala Lumpur Summit 2019, Muhammad Muzammil said that, in this endeavour, the country’s Muslim youth would do well to use social media platforms wisely.

Yesterday, The ASEAN Post published an article on Zakir Naik and the effect he has had on Malaysian society. That article left us with a glaring question: Why was the government of Malaysia so adamant in keeping Naik in the country before his controversial speech in the northern city of Kota Bharu in the state of Kelantan?