Prime Minister of Malaysia


The Prime Minister of Malaysia is the head of government of Malaysia. The prime minister directs the executive branch of the federal government. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong appoints a member of Parliament who, in his opinion, is most likely to command the confidence of a majority of MPs, the prime minister, usually the leader of the party winning the most seats in a general election.
After the formation of Malaysia on 16 September 1963, Tunku Abdul Rahman, the chief minister of the Federation of Malaya, became the first prime minister of Malaysia.

Appointment

According to the Federal Constitution, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong shall first appoint a prime minister to preside over the Cabinet. The prime minister is to be a member of the Dewan Rakyat, and who in his majesty's judgment is likely to command the confidence of the majority of the members of that House. This person must be a Malaysian citizen, but cannot have obtained their citizenship by means of naturalisation or registration. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong shall appoint other ministers from either the Dewan Rakyat or Dewan Negara with the prime minister's advice.
The prime minister and his cabinet ministers must take and subscribe to the oath of office and allegiance as well as the oath of secrecy in the presence of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong before they can exercise functions of office. The Cabinet is collectively accountable to the Parliament of Malaysia. The members of the Cabinet shall not hold any office of profit and engage in any trade, business or profession that will cause a conflict of interest. The Prime Minister's Department is the body and ministry in which the prime minister exercises his/her functions and powers.
In the case where a government cannot get its appropriation legislation passed by the House of Representatives, or when the House passes a vote of "no confidence" in the government, the prime minister is bound by convention to resign immediately. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong's choice of replacement prime minister will be dictated by the circumstances. All other ministers shall continue to hold office by the pleasure of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, unless if the appointment of any minister is revoked by his majesty upon the advice of the prime minister. Any minister may resign his office.
Following a resignation in other circumstances, defeat in an election, or the death of a prime minister, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong would generally appoint as Prime Minister the leader of the governing party.

Powers

The power of the prime minister is subject to a number of limitations. Prime ministers removed as leader of his or her party, or whose government loses a vote of no confidence in the House of Representatives, must advise a new election of the lower house or resign the office. The defeat of a supply bill or unable to pass important policy-related legislation is seen to require the resignation of the government or dissolution of Parliament, much like a non-confidence vote, since a government that cannot spend money is hamstrung, also called loss of supply.
The prime minister's party will normally have a majority in the House of Representatives and party discipline is exceptionally strong in Malaysian politics, so passage of the government's legislation through the House of Representatives is mostly a formality.
Under the Constitution, the prime minister’s role includes advising the Yang di-Pertuan Agong on:
Under Article 39 of the Constitution, executive authority is vested in the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. However, Article 40 states that in most cases, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong is bound to exercise his powers on the advice of the Cabinet or a minister acting under the Cabinet's general authority. Thus, most of the day-to-day work of governing is actually done by the prime minister and the Cabinet.

Caretaker prime minister

Under Article 55 of Constitution of Malaysia, the lower house of Parliament, unless sooner dissolved by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong with his own discretion on the advice of the prime minister, shall continue for five years from the date of its first meeting. Article 55 of the Constitution permits a delay of 60 days of general election to be held from the date of dissolution and Parliament shall be summoned to meet on a date not later than 120 days from the date of dissolution. Conventionally, between the dissolution of one Parliament and the convening of the next, the prime minister and the cabinet remain in office in a caretaker capacity.
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Timeline


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from: 31/08/1957 till: 22/09/1970 color:darkblue text:"Tunku Abdul Rahman" fontsize:10
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from: 22/09/1970 till: 14/01/1976 color:darkblue text:"Abdul Razak Hussein" fontsize:10
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from: 15/01/1976 till: 16/07/1981 color:darkblue text:"Hussein Onn" fontsize:10
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from: 16/07/1981 till: 31/10/2003 color:darkblue text:"Mahathir Mohamad" fontsize:10
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from: 31/10/2003 till: 03/04/2009 color:darkblue text:"Abdullah Ahmad Badawi" fontsize:10
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from: 03/04/2009 till: 10/05/2018 color:darkblue text:"Najib Razak" fontsize:10
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from: 10/05/2018 till: 01/03/2020 color:red text:"Mahathir Mohamad" fontsize:10
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from: 01/03/2020 till: 10/05/2020 color:darkblue text:"Muhyiddin Yassin" fontsize:10

List of acting prime ministers of Malaysia

From time to time, prime ministers are required to leave the country on business and a deputy is appointed to take their place during that time. In the days before jet aeroplanes, such absences could be for extended periods. However, the position can be fully decided by the Yang Di-pertuan Agong, The King of Malaysia when the position remains empty following the sudden resignation or death of the prime minister.
During the 2020 Malaysian political crisis, Mahathir Mohamad had been appointed as the interim prime minister by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong following the abrupt resignation of he himself as the 7th Prime Minister of Malaysia since he won the 14th General Election massively in 2018 while the King himself decided the appointment of Muhyiddin Yassin as the new 8th Prime Minister of Malaysia few days later. This position does not exist in any part of the laws of Malaysia, however, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong created the position to handle the situation during the crisis, based on his powers provided by the Federal Constitution.
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Living former prime ministers

Prime ministers are usually granted certain privileges after leaving office at government expense. Former prime ministers continue to be important national figures.
NameTerm of officeDate of birth
Mahathir Mohamad1981–2003, 2018–202010 July 1925
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi2003–200926 November 1939
Najib Razak2009–201823 July 1953

The most recently deceased prime minister was Tunku Abdul Rahman, who died on 6 December 1990.