KUALA LUMPUR – The prolonged political chaos that plagued the nation over the last four years could have been prevented if MPs and politicians had set aside their differences to serve the people, said Malaysia’s King, Sultan Abdullah Ahmad Shah, in his address at the opening of the parliamentary session on Monday.

In his final parliamentary address as Malaysia’s King, he said that he never had any intention of interfering in the country’s politics.

“It is etched in the nation’s history that I am the only King who reigned with four prime ministers and four different Cabinets,” said the monarch, who acceded to the throne on Jan 31, 2019.

“If the episodes that led to the resignation of the seventh prime minister (Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad) had not occurred, then the political turmoil that lasted until the 15th General Election could have been avoided,” he opined.

“More importantly, the political crisis that plagued the country for nearly four years could have been avoided if MPs and politicians had set aside their differences and united, in order to safeguard the interests of my people and the country we love,” he added.

Three premiers have come and gone under Sultan Abdullah’s rule so far, owing to a series of political ousters and resignations, starting with Dr Mahathir, who resigned in Feb 2020, followed by Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who was appointed by the King the following month.

After Mr Muhyiddin resigned in August 2021, the King was again forced to choose and appoint a new premier, Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

The constitutional monarch, who plays a largely ceremonial role, can appoint whoever he believes will command a majority in Parliament.

The general election last November resulted in an unprecedented hung Parliament, with neither then opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim nor former premier Muhyiddin winning the simple majority needed to form a government. Umno suffered its worst loss in history.

After the King’s proposal for Mr Anwar and Mr Muhyiddin to work together was turned down by the latter, he was yet again forced to pick the next prime minister, Datuk Seri Anwar.

The Prime Minister’s Pakatan Harapan coalition formed a unity government with former rival Umno and its Barisan Nasional coalition, while Mr Muhyiddin’s Perikatan Nasional remained in the opposition.

“I hope that the tenth Prime Minister will be the last for me, before I return to Pahang,” Sultan Abdullah said, referring to the end of his term as King on Jan 30, 2024.

Congratulating Mr Anwar on his appointment and for proving his legitimacy through a motion of confidence in Parliament on Dec 19, the King said he hoped the government could now focus its efforts on ensuring political stability and economic growth for the country.

He also thanked former prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob for his contributions as the ninth prime minister.

Parliament will sit until March 30. A White Paper on procurement of Covid-19 vaccines that allegedly did not follow the proper procedure is slated to be tabled, as well as a White Paper on Pedra Branca.

Last December, Mr Anwar had called for the claims on Pedra Branca to be reviewed, but said that this would not affect its status as determined by the International Court of Justice (ICJ). In February 2017, Malaysia had filed an application for a revision of a 2008 decision by the ICJ to award legal jurisdiction of Pedra Branca to Singapore.

However, in 2018, then Premier Mahathir withdrew the application.