Malaysian PM Chairs Another Special Cabinet Meeting In Putrajaya

PUTRAJAYA (Malaysia), Oct 26 (Bernama) -- Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin on Monday chaired another special meeting with his Cabinet following Malaysia's King Al-Sultan Abdullah Riáyatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah’s decree on Sunday that there was no necessity to declare a state of emergency in the country. The last time such a special meeting was held was last Friday. Muhyiddin, who arrived at Perdana Putra Complex at 9.20 am, was believed to have met with PAS (The Malaysian Islamic Party) president Abdul Hadi Awang and MIC (The Malaysian Indian Congress) president S A Vigneswaran before the special meeting. Both PAS and MIC are Malaysian political parties. The vehicles carrying Abdul Hadi and Vigneswaran were seen entering the Perdana Putra area 10 minutes after Muhyiddin’s arrival and left just as the special Cabinet meeting began at 11.30 am. No information was obtained from the duo concerning the meeting as they did not stop their vehicles to speak to the reporters waiting at the entrance. Meanwhile, among the Cabinet ministers who attended the special meeting were Home Minister Hamzah Zainuddin, Communications and Multimedia Minister Saifuddin Abdullah, National Unity Minister Halimah Mohamed Sadique, Foreign Minister Hishammuddin Hussein and Education Minister Dr Radzi Jidin. Also spotted was Attorney-General Idrus Harun. On Sunday, Al-Sultan Abdullah in a statement issued by Istana Negara (National Palace) decreed that there was no necessity for a state of emergency to be declared in the country and that the people, regardless of their background and political ideology, should put aside their differences and quarrels so as to unite and play their role in helping the government and relevant authorities curb the spread of COVID-19 for everyone’s safety and country’s wellbeing. Muhyiddin, in a statement late last night, said that the Cabinet took note of the King’s decree and would hold further discussions on the matter. The Prime Minister also thanked His Majesty for the trust placed in his government and welcomed the advice so that the stability of the government is not jeopardised. He said the government would continue to give priority to protecting the people from the COVID-19 pandemic. The Malay Rulers convened a special meeting which lasted almost three hours yesterday to study the proposals made by Muhyiddin and several Cabinet ministers during their audience with the King at Istana Abdul Aziz in Kuantan (the capital city of Malaysia’s Pahang state), last Friday. -- BERNAMA