KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak has asked members of the ruling party and his supporters to be prepared for polls, in one of the strongest signs yet from the leader that he may call early elections.
Najib, whose tenure ends by the second half of next year, is seeking a fresh mandate to rule as he faces an internal revolt led by his former mentor.
"I want to ask you all, are we strong enough? Are we ready? Can we dissolve Parliament tomorrow?" he said to cheers from a capacity crowd at the 87,000-seater stadium in Kuala Lumpur, where his party, the United Malay National Organization (UMNO), celebrated its 71st anniversary.
"That is the spirit that we want," he said.
Tens of thousands of party members clad in red, the party color, filled the stadium grandstand, cheering and singing along to party songs for several hours as they waited for Najib to turn up to deliver his keynote address.
Thursday's anniversary celebration was arguably one of the largest since Najib took over as prime minister in 2009.
"All of you are have gathered here, as a symbol that our party is the strongest party on Malaysian soil," Najib said.
The next election is not due until 2018 but Najib is expected to capitalize on opposition disarray and call one this year.
Government sources have told Reuters that Najib may call polls in the third quarter.
Although Najib is widely expected to win, he has little room for manoeuvre. The UMNO-led Barisan Nasional (BN) won narrowly in the 2013 elections and if his majority was further eroded, Najib could face an internal leadership challenge.
Najib's former mentor turned critic Mahathir Mohamad is now leading an opposition party campaign to oust him.
Malaysian PM hints at early polls
Malaysian PM hints at early polls
What is Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’?
- The Board of Peace’s charter does not appear to limit its role to the occupied Palestinian territory of Gaza
- Trump will be chairman but also “separately serve as inaugural representative of the United States of America”
BRUSSELS: US President Donald Trump’s government has asked countries to pay $1 billion for a permanent spot on his “Board of Peace” aimed at resolving conflicts, according to its charter seen by AFP.
The board was originally conceived to oversee the rebuilding of war-torn Gaza, but the charter does not appear to limit its role to the occupied Palestinian territory.
What exactly will it do? And who has been invited?
- To what end? -
The Board of Peace will be chaired by Trump, according to its founding charter.
It is “an international organization that seeks to promote stability, restore dependable and lawful governance, and secure enduring peace in areas affected or threatened by conflict,” reads the preamble of the charter sent to countries invited to participate.
It will “undertake such peace-building functions in accordance with international law,” it adds.
- Who’s boss? -
Trump will be chairman but also “separately serve as inaugural representative of the United States of America.”
“The Chairman shall have exclusive authority to create, modify, or dissolve subsidiary entities as necessary or appropriate to fulfill the Board of Peace’s mission,” the document states.
He will pick members of an Executive Board to be “leaders of global stature” to “serve two-year terms, subject to removal by the Chairman.”
He may also, “acting on behalf of the Board of Peace,” “adopt resolutions or other directives.”
The chairman can be replaced only in case of “voluntary resignation or as a result of incapacity.”
- Who can be a member? -
Member states have to be invited by the US president, and will be represented by their head of state or government.
Each member “shall serve a term of no more than three years,” the charter says.
But “the three-year membership term shall not apply to Member States that contribute more than USD $1,000,000,000 in cash funds to the Board of Peace within the first year of the Charter’s entry into force,” it adds.
The board will “convene voting meetings at least annually,” and “each member State shall have one vote.”
But while all decisions require “a majority of Member States present and voting,” they will also be “subject to the approval of the Chairman, who may also cast a vote in his capacity as Chairman in the event of a tie.”
- Who’s already in? -
The White House has said its members will include:
US President Donald Trump, chair
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio
Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special negotiator
Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law
Tony Blair, former UK prime minister
Marc Rowan, billionaire US financier
Ajay Banga, World Bank president
Robert Gabriel, loyal Trump aide on the National Security Council
- Who’s been invited? -
The list of countries and leaders who say they have been invited include, but are not limited to:
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin
Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney
Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi
Argentina’s President Javier Milei
Jordan
Brazil
Paraguay
India
Pakistan
Germany
France
Italy
Hungary
Romania
Uzbekistan
Belarus
Greece
Morocco
Slovenia
Poland
- When does it start? -
The charter says it enters into force “upon expression of consent to be bound by three States.”
