Key Malaysia Party Threatens to Leave Ruling Bloc, Pressuring PM
- UMNO says it wants to renegotiate terms to stay in government
- Move comes after Anwar’s bid to oust Prime Minister Muhyiddin
The United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) headquarter building in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Photographer: Ore Huiying/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
The largest party in Malaysia’s ruling coalition threatened to pull out unless it gets better terms, adding pressure on Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin to shore up his unstable government or call a snap election.
The United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), which holds about a third of the seats in Muhyiddin’s 12-party government, said in a statement late Tuesday that it would enter talks with him to stay in the bloc. It also suggested formalizing an alliance with the Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party, which would unify the largest Malay-Muslim political organizations.