Political succession in Malaysia: Heir today, gone tomorrow

While leadership changeover has stalled, reforms to strengthen institutions and oversight need not.

- Shannon Teoh

Despite accusations of authoritarianism, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad was Malaysia's last leader to hand over power to a predesignated replacement at a predesignated time: Oct 31, 2003.

This, however, came after a history of discarding deputies during his 22-year rule. He eventually turned on the very person he chose to succeed him, the late Tun Abdullah Badawi, who was pressured to resign in 2009.

That the premiership in Malaysia is something to be seized, not awaited or worked for, has led to repeated power tussles. Most recently, it saw four men take the premiership in as many years, after the country's first-ever change of government in 2018.

By comparison, it took Singapore nearly six decades to see its fourth prime minister — Mr Lawrence Wong, chosen by his peers to lead the ruling People's Action Party — sworn into office.

But Malaysia's incumbent Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim now has an opportunity to restore a modicum of political stability by instituting a credible succession plan, rather than appointing deputies with no real prospect of taking over.

Not since Mr Abdullah has a prime minister had a two-thirds parliamentary majority. Mr Abdullah eventually lost this in the 2008 election, which led to Umno forcing him out and choosing Najib Razak.

Datuk Seri Anwar's current supermajority, however, is tenuous — the product of a multi-coalition government stitched together days after a divisive 2022 general election that resulted in Malaysia's first-ever hung Parliament.

With no heir apparent, remove Mr Anwar and the government will fall apart, squabbling over who should lead, and possibly enabling the opposition Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition's leader Muhyiddin Yassin to return to power.