Kuala Lumpur
The weekend elections in Malaysia delivered a hung assembly. The political parties soon found themselves trying to manufacture coalitions to reach the magical majority mark of 112. However, King Al-Sultan Abdullah on Tuesday said he will pick the next prime minister after the warring parties could not break the deadlock.
After the failure of coalition talks, the king's role in the formation of the next federal government has taken the centre stage. But who is the king and what role does he play in Malaysia's unique constitutional monarchy system?
Read more: 'Let me take a decision soon': Malaysia King to call the shots after stalemate election
Who is Malaysia's King Al-Sultan Abdullah?
King Al-Sultan Abdullah is Malaysia's 16th monarch and ascended the throne in 2019 at the age of 59.
He belongs to one of the royal families of the nine states which picks the king every five years â a system that was agreed upon in 1957 when Malaysia gained independence from the British colonialists.
King Al-Sultan Abdullah is the ruler of the state of Pahang which is situated on Malaysia's east coast. As a king, Al-Sultan Abdullah is the head of the state and the commander of the armed forces. More importantly, he oversees key federal appointments, including the post of prime minister.
Is the Malaysian king always the kingmaker?
While King Al-Sultan Abdullah has a rather ceremonial role to play in the electoral choices, he has the power to appoint any lawmaker that he believes can amass the required majority.
Rarely has a Malaysian king ever used this power to conjure a government and a prime minister. However, the political instability in the last three years has prompted the silver-haired Al-Sultan Abdullah to step up and call the shots.
WATCH | Malaysia faces hung Parliament for first time in history after tight election race
In February 2020, he appointed Muhyiddin Yassin as the PM after Mahathir Mohamad was forced to resign following a bitter coalition infighting.
A year later, the king appointed Ismail Sabri Yaakob as the new PM after asking the country's lawmakers to submit their preferred choice as the PM in a letter.
On Tuesday, after opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim and former PM Muhyiddin Yassin could not gather the numbers, Al-Sultan Abdullah told reporters, "Let me make a decision soon."
The King proposed the formation of a 'unity government', a proposal that was subsequently turned down by Muhyiddin.
As many as 30 lawmakers from the Barisan Nasional alliance have been summoned by the monarch to meet him on Wednesday to determine who becomes the next PM.
The last three years have been rather turbulent for Malaysia's political class and ordinary citizens. Rising inflation and global economic slowdown have only added to the woes and thus all eyes will be on Al-Sultan Abdullah to pick a candidate that can last the complete tenure.
(With inputs from agencies)
WATCH WION LIVE HERE: