Tan Sri Mahiaddin Yasin
2020 - 2021
Yang di-Pertuan Agong believed Tan Sri Muhyiddin could command the majority of the Dewan Rakyat, giving him the opportunity to form the next government after following the abrupt resignation of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad's as Prime Minister five days before. He led the country through unprecedented times during the Covid-19 pandemic, through his efforts during the Movement Control Order (MCO).
Born 15th May 1947, in Muar, Johor.
Became the Prime Minister of Malaysia on 1st March 2020
He has 4 children; Fakhri Yassin, Nabilah, Najwa, and Farhan Yassin.
Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin is a Malaysian politician who served as the 8th Prime Minister of Malaysia. He was appointed on 29th February 2020 and sworn in on 1st March 2020 after Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s unexpected resignation on 24th February 2020. Tan Sri Muhyiddin is Member of Parliament for Pagoh, a Member of the Johor State Legislative Assembly for Gambir, former Deputy President of Pakatan Harapan and Chairman of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia. Tan Sri Muhyiddin stepped down as Prime Minister on 16th August 2021 after heavy criticism over his handling of the Covid-19 crisis.
Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin was born on 15 May 1947 in Muar, Johor, Malaysia. His father, Haji Muhammad Yassin bin Muhammad, was a Malay of Bugis descent. Muhammad Yassin was an Islamic theologian and cleric based in Bandar Maharani, Muar, Johor, while his mother, Hajjah Khadijah binti Kassim, was a Malay of Javanese descent.Muhyiddin received his primary education at Sekolah Kebangsaan Maharani, Muar, Johor and Sekolah Kebangsaan Ismail, Muar, Johor. He received his secondary education at the Muar High School, Johor. Subsequently, he attended University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur and received an Honors bachelor’s degree in Economics and Malay Studies in 1971.
After the completion of his studies, Tan Sri Muhyiddin joined the Johor state public service as the Assistant Secretary of Training and Scholarship. In 1974, he was appointed the Assistant District Officer (ADO) of Muar. He left the civil service to join the corporate sector in the Johor State Economic Development Corporation (PKENJ). Muhyiddin’s involvement in politics began when he joined UMNO as an ordinary member of the Pagoh division in 1971. He rose through the rank and file of Johor UMNO rapidly. He was elected as UMNO Youth Chief of the Pagoh division and the Secretary in 1976, before becoming Youth Chief of UMNO Youth Johor, a post he held until 1987. Muhyiddin occupied an EXCO UMNO Youth seat at the national level. In 1984, Muhyiddin was elected the UMNO Division Chief of Pagoh replacing Tan Sri Othman Saat before eventually leading Johor UMNO.
In 1978, Tan Sri Muhyiddin contested and was elected Member of Parliament for the Pagoh constituency, a seat he kept until 1982. He was appointed Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry for Foreign Affairs before being promoted to Deputy Minister in the Ministry of Federal Territories and later the Ministry of Trade and Industry. In the 1986 general election, Tan Sri Muhyiddin contested and won the Johor State Legislative constituency seat of Bukit Serampang, opening the path for him to become the Chief Minister of Johor on 13 August 1986.
His tenure as Menteri Besar lasted until 6 May 1995, when he contested and won the Pagoh parliamentary seat in the General Election. He joined the federal cabinet, serving several different Ministries as Minister of Youth and Sports (1995–1999), Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs (1999–2004), Minister of Agriculture and Agro-based Industry (2004–2008) and Minister of International Trade and Industry (2008–2009). He was appointed Deputy Prime Minister, and Minister of Education, by Prime Minister, Dato’ Sri Najib Razak in 2009, when the latter assumed the Prime Minister’s position that had been relinquished by Malaysia’s fifth Prime Minister, Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi .
As Minister of Education, Tan Sri Muhyiddin announced the decision to return to the teaching of mathematics and science in Malay in all government primary and secondary schools (Science and Maths were taught in English under a new policy introduced by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, the fourth Prime Minister of Malaysia).
During Dato’ Sri Najib’s mid-term Cabinet reshuffle on 28th July 2015, Tan Sri Muhyiddin was dropped from his position as Deputy Prime Minister. The dismissal came after Tan Sri Muhyiddin had made public and critical remarks about Dato’ Sri Najib’s handling of the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal. Dato’ Sri Najib stated that Tan Sri Muhyiddin’s dismissal, and the contemporaneous dismissals of other Ministers who had been critical of his leadership, was to create a more “unified team”. Tan Sri Muhyiddin was eventually sacked by the party’s supreme council in June 2016.
In August 2016, Tan Sri Muhyiddin registered a new political party, called Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (BERSATU), together with Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. He became the party’s president while Tun Dr Mahathir and his son, Dato’ Seri Utama Mukhriz Mahathir, became the chairman and deputy-president respectively. BERSATU joined forces with Pakatan Harapan and in the historic general elections of 2018, Pakatan Harapan toppled the Barisan Nasional government which had been in power since Independence. Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad became Malaysia’s seventh Prime Minister, and Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin became the Minister of Home Affairs in 2018.
In February 2020, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad resigned as Prime Minister, following Bersatu’s decision to withdraw from government and join forces with UMNO. On 29 February 2020, the Agong believed Tan Sri Muhyiddin could command the majority of the Dewan Rakyat, giving him the opportunity to form the next government, and Tan Sri Muhyiddin was installed as the eighth Prime Minister of Malaysia. He was the first Prime Minister to hold both parliamentary and state constituencies at the same time.
On 16th August 2021, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin resigned after only 17 months of being Malaysia’s 8th Prime Minister after heavy pressure and criticism over his handling of the Covid outbreak. Muhyiddin continued as President of Parti Pribumi Malaysia (Bersatu) which in the country’s 15th General Elections, joined forces with Parti Se-Islam Tanah Melayu (PAS) to form Perikatan Nasional (PN). PN scored decisive wins in the Eastern and Northern states of Malaysia, winning 73 of the 222 seats of the Malaysian Parliament. However, Pakatan Harapan (PH) made a pact with Barisan Nasional (BN) as well as East Malaysian parties and successfully formed the post-GE15 government of Malaysia, with Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim appointed as Malaysia’s 10th Prime Minister.
Note: In the aftermath of 2018 general election (GE14), Tan Sri Muhyiddin was diagnosed with an early-stage tumour in the pancreas. He spent one month in Mount Elizabeth Hospital, Singapore to undergo surgery to extract the tumour. The operation was successful and he returned to Malaysia under stable condition.
1947: Born in Muar, Johor on 15th May.
1971: Graduated with Honors bachelor’s degree in Economics and Malay studies in University of Malaya. After the completion of his studies, Muhyiddin joined the Johor state public service as the Assistant Secretary of Training and Scholarship.
1974: Became the Pagoh UMNO Youth Leader/ Johor UMNO Youth Secretary.
1978: Became the Pagoh Member of Parliament.
1982: Became the Deputy Head of UMNO Pagoh Division.
1985: Became the UMNO Supreme Council Member.
1986: Became the 13th Chief Minister of Johor.
1993: Won the UMNO Vice President.
1995: Became the Ministry of Youth and Sports.
1996: Failed to defend the position of UMNO Vice President.
2000: Won the UMNO Vice President election again, the third highest vote.
2001-2004: Appointed as the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs.
2004-2008: Appointed as the Ministry of Agriculture and Agro-based Industry.
2008-2009: Appointed as the Ministry of International Trade and Industry.
2009-2016: Appointed as the Ministry of Education. In the same year, appointed as the Timbalan Presiden UMNO and Deputy Chairman of the Barisan Nasional. He was also appointed to be the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia.
2016: Suspended from the post of UMNO Deputy President following the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) issue. Later in the same year, he was fired as Deputy President of UMNO. After that, he became one of the founders of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (BERSATU) and was appointed as President.
2017: Appointed as Deputy President in the new structure of the Pakatan Harapan Presidential Council and appointed as the Chairman of Pakatan Harapan Johor.
2018: Pakatan Harapan won GE14 and Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad became the 7th Prime Minister of Malaysia. Tan Sri Muhyiddin was appointed as the Minister of Home Affairs.
2020: Following the shock resignation of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and the withdrawal of Bersatu from Pakatan Harapan, the nation faced a week of political uncertainty as no leader decisively commanded majority support from MPs. On 29th February 2020, after meetings with MPs, the King announced Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin as the 8th Prime Minister of Malaysia.
2021: Tan Sri Muhyiddin resigned as the 8th Prime Minister of Malaysia on 16th August 2021.
2022: Tan Sri Muhyiddin was appointed as the Chairman of Perikatan Nasional (PN)
November 2022: In the 15th General Election (GE15), Tan Sri Muhyiddin successfully defended his seat and became Pagoh Member of Parliament under political coalition Perikatan Nasional.
December 2022: Tan Sri Muhyiddin was given a mandate as Chief Member of Parliament for the Perikatan Nasional (PN)
“Covid-19 and climate change, the twin Cs, are proving to be the twin engines for concerns and despairs. Both are global common threats that require a common global solution. Just as we need a vaccine for Covid-19, climate change requires urgent solutions that can’t wait for a generation. The impact of climate change is global in scope and unprecedented in various economic of scales, from shifting weather patterns that threaten food production, to rapidly rising sea levels that increase the risk of catastrophic flooding. Without drastic action now, adapting to these impacts in the future will be more difficult and even more expensive.” – Speech at International Greentech & Eco Products Exhibition & Conference Malaysia (IGEM) on 19th October 2020
“The role of education could not be more essential in developing leadership potential of our young generation. Indeed, education is a conduit through which leaders are born. As education today creates the leaders of tomorrow, we need to provide quality education that will produce visionary, effective and capable leaders.” – Speech at Perdana Discourse Series 11: The Role of Education in Leadership Development on 30th June 2010 at Perdana Leadership Foundation, Putrajaya
“Malaysia is deeply concerned over the fate of the Palestinians amidst the continued volatility in the Middle East. Malaysia strongly condemns and rejects Israel’s recent announcement to implement its plan to annex parts of the Occupied Palestinian Territory in the West Bank. The illegal and unilateral action by Israel clearly calls into question its sincerity towards a peaceful and lasting solution to the long-standing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It also further diminishes the prospect of a two-state solution, which is supported by the international community. Malaysia will continue to stand in strong solidarity with the people of Palestine in the wake of Israeli aggression, and we call upon the international community, in particular the United Nations Security Council to condemn and reject the Israeli annexation plan. The international community must also ensure the plan will never be implemented.” – Speech at the 36th ASEAN SUMMIT on 26th June 2020.
“Malaysia stands firm with its stand that matters relating to the South China Sea must be resolved peacefully and constructively, in accordance with the universally recognized principles of international law, including UNCLOS 1982. Malaysia is of the view that all parties need to work together to ensure that the South China Sea remains a sea of peace, stability and trade. As a coastal state, it is a matter of great significance that our maritime area is safe for international trade to prosper. Malaysia reiterates its view that while international law guarantees the freedom of navigation, the presence of warships and vessels in the South China Sea has the potential to increase tension that may, in turn, result in miscalculations which may affect peace, security and stability in the region.” – Speech at the 37th ASEAN SUMMIT on 12th November 2020 in Putrajaya.
