KUCHING, Aug 20: Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr James Jemut Masing has called on all Member of Parliaments (MPs), regardless of their political affiliations, to put aside their differences and rally behind newly minted Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob to lead the country in its fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.
Masing, who is also Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) president, said although Ismail Sabri may not be their choice as the country’s ninth prime minister, he was legitimately elected by the 114 MPs out of the possible 220 MPs.
“Lets give him a chance, in the next 20-months, to be our ‘commander-in-chief’ and fight this dreaded Covid-19 pandemic.
“Once Covid-19 is contained, we can return to normalcy. Then, if we wish, we can elect a peacetime prime minister using the normal democratic process,” he said in a statement today.
Masing pointed out that Ismail Sabri was legally elected by the Member of the Parliaments (MPs) and his past record has shown that he is a dedicated and hardworking minister.
According to Masing, Ismail Sabri was also loyal to the party which nominated him to stand during the 14th General Election (GE14).
“On behalf of PRS, I wish to offer our heartiest congratulations to Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yakoob as the ninth Prime Minister of Malaysia.
“He has a very heavy task ahead of him. He needs to bring back the divided House into one solid force to battle Covid-19,” he added.
Earlier today, Palace Comptroller Datuk Inderat Ahmad Fadil Shamduddin in an official statement said Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri, who is Bera MP, will be taking his oath of office as the country’s ninth Prime Minister before the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah at Istana Negara Tomorrow at 2.30pm.
The announcement was made following a special meeting to discuss the subject matter between the Malay Rulers and the King, which started at 2.30pm today and lasted for two and a half hours. — DayakDaily
