Kuala Lumpur: Despite already meeting the Yang di-Pertuan Agong at his palace in Kuantan, Pahang this evening, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin is not expected to announce any decision to the public tonight.
Malay Mail understands that Muhyiddin will not be making a live address after the Cabinet was said to seek emergency powers to tackle the third wave of Covid-19, which stirred anxiety among the public.
“There is no live [address] tonight. As usual, if there is a live [address], we will inform the media,” a source close to the prime minister told the media, with the Prime Minister’s Office remaining tight-lipped over Muhyiddin’s audience with the King earlier.
Earlier today, the Pagoh MP had left for Kuantan to meet Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah at the latter’s Istana Abdulaziz in Kuantan.
He was spotted arriving at the Istana Abdulaziz in Kuantan at 4.40pm and left after a two-hour meeting with the King.
Speculation had been rife since early this morning that the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government may declare a state of emergency as Malaysia struggles to contain the spike in Covid-19 infection that has also hurt the economy.
Reports have so far suggested that Putrajaya is seeking a dubious so-called state of “partial emergency”, also dubbed as “economic, health, or political emergency”.
It is unclear what the emergency powers being sought are at the moment as the breadth and scope under a state of emergency are far ranging.
Among them include the suspension of Parliament and elections, which provides for a layer of accountability from decision makers to elected representatives.
