KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob announced on Monday (Oct 10) that parliament has been dissolved, paving the way for national elections to be held before the end of the year.
Speaking during a televised national address at 3pm, Mr Ismail Sabri said he sought consent from the king at noon on Sunday to dissolve parliament, and his request was accepted.
“I encourage all state governments, except the governments of Sabah, Sarawak, Johor and Melaka to dissolve their respective state assemblies at the same time,” he said.
There had been intense speculation about the dissolution of parliament to pave the way for the 15th general election (GE15).
On Sunday, the New Straits Times, citing a source, reported that Mr Ismail Sabri had an audience with the king in the afternoon. The report said that the prime minister sought a royal audience to seek consent for the dissolution of parliament.
This came after their earlier meeting last Thursday but the Istana Negara said that it was a pre-Cabinet briefing as part of the king’s weekly routine meeting to discuss matters related to the government.
Last Friday, Mr Ismail Sabri’s government unveiled a budget of RM372.3 billion (US$80.06 billion) for 2023 amid an uncertain global environment and expected slow growth. It is one of the largest budgets in Malaysia’s history.