MUHYIDDIN Yassin said the declaration of emergency was an appropriate response to a major health crisis and not due to politics.

The prime minister denies that the emergency is to enable him to hold on to power but to ensure that the Covid-19 pandemic could be managed effectively and speedily.

He gave an assurance that the emergency would be lifted earlier than its scheduled end of August 1 if the pandemic could be contained and the country deemed safe from the virus.

“If we can settle it early (and) the independent special committee says it can be done (lifted), I will just follow… We also do not want to be restricted by such a regulation forever,” said Muhyiddin in a special interview in conjunction with his first anniversary as prime minister.

The interview was aired on Buletin Bernama last night.

Muhyiddin said via the emergency ordinance, the government can propose amendments to certain acts or enact new regulations in the form of ordinance without having to go through Parliament which would take a long time.

“So, I would like to say that this does not mean the emergency is to enable me to hold the prime minister’s post for a long time. I also do not know which party now has more seats than me, previously there was an attempt to show (the numbers) but it was not proven.

“I am confident that I have a big support. I am convinced that my position is constitutionally right. Legal. I cannot sit as an illegitimate prime minister. That’s because I do my work properly. So, I’m not worried about that.

“But the declaration of emergency was not a question of politics. Some politicians view it as political, (but) no. Politics should not be used for emergency, but this Covid requires (declaration of) an emergency… So, I hope the people understand.”

He said the 15th general election would be held at a suitable time because the priority now is to overcome the Covid-19 threat, which has infected almost 300,000 people and claimed more than 1,000 lives in the country.

The first Covid-19 case was reported in Malaysia on January 25 last year, with the first wave involving imported cases, while the second wave struck at the end of February the same year.

There was a spike in Covid-19 cases during the third wave which occurred in September last year after the Sabah elections.

After the daily positive cases surged from double digits to thousands, the prime minister advised the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to declare an emergency. On January 12, Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah declared the proclamation of emergency which will be in force until August 1.

The emergency is a proactive measure to curb the spread of Covid-19 and will be lifted earlier if new cases could be effectively controlled and reduced.

The king also consented to the government’s proposal to set up the independent special committee to advise him accordingly if the emergency can be ended earlier. The committee comprises government and opposition MPs and health experts. – Bernama, March 1, 2021.