PN chairman Muhyiddin says new federal govt will be formed soon

KUALA LUMPUR: Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin held a meeting today with the top leaders of two parties and said a new federal government will be formed soon in the wake of a hung parliament after the 15th general election.

Muhyiddin made the statement in posts on his Facebook and Twitter sites after meeting with PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang, whose party is a PN component, and Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) chairman Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg. The two leaders had called on Muhyiddin.

"Negotiations are also being held with other like-minded parties and independent Members of Parliament. God willing, the (new) federal government will be formed very soon," he said in his posts.

He also uploaded a picture of the meeting between him and the two other leaders.

GE15 ended in a hung parliament for the first time in the election history of Malaysia, with no clear winner to form the new federal government.

PN, comprising Bersatu - of which Muhyiddin is the president, PAS and Gerakan, had won 73 seats, short of the 112 seats needed for a simple majority in the 222-seat Dewan Rakyat. GPS had won 22 seats, the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition, 82; Barisan Nasional (BN), 30; Gerakan Rakyat Sabah (GRS), six; Warisan, three; Independents, two; and Parti Bangsa Malaysia (PBM) and Parti Kesejahteraan Demokratik Masyarakat (KDM), one seat.

Earlier today, Muhyiddin, who is a former prime minister, said PN was ready to establish cooperation with any party that can accept the principles and struggle of the coalition in forming a clean and stable government, but not PH.

-- BERNAMA