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"In the halls, insiders are acknowledging that PKR president Anwar Ibrahim volunteered to not join the cabinet and to make way for Mahathir as prime minister, in order to keep Harapan 2.0 alive."

"I would like to stress one thing - I will never work with the corrupt. Far from it, I won't form a government with them."

This set off a dizzying round of manoeuvres that at first put Mahathir in a position to call the shots for the formation of a new government but the tide quickly turned against him when he floated the idea of drawing candidates for the cabinet without regard for party lines.

This was conveyed by a statement from the coalition which also condemned efforts to form a “backdoor government” involving “traitors and kleptocrats”.

"This was not Bersatu's decision. The Supreme Council was not consulted or informed about this."

This brings the total number of MPs nominating the former home minister for the premiership to 95, 17 seats short of a 112-seat simple majority.

Thomas submitted his resignation letter to Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad who appointed him to the post for a two-year term which was due to end only in June.

“Warisan of Sabah and GPS of Sarawak have a crucial and historic role in determining the outcome of who will form the next government.”

Gabungan Parti Sarawak, which holds 18 seats, is understood to be backing Muhyiddin and is expected to announce its support.

Following Voon’s resignation, Datuk Chang Khim Wah will be nominated as EcoWorld Malaysia’s representative on EcoWorld International’s Board.