KUALA LUMPUR — The appointment of the next Johor chief minister should be done in accordance to the constitution, which states that the party that has the majority will decide the candidate, said PKR president Anwar Ibrahim.

Mr Anwar said the candidate’s name will be submitted to Johor’s sultan, who will then appoint the chief minister.

“The decision must be in accordance with the constitution. The candidate will be chosen from the party that has majority rule and is presented to his highness (the sultan) for approval,” he said.

“The constitution is clear. The candidate will be one who has majority support from the state legislative assembly,” he said after a Rantau by-election campaign event on April 11.

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“Therefore (Prime Minister) Mahathir (Mohamad) has already said that the name has been submitted and it is from Bersatu that has the support of the majority and now the sultan’s approval is pending,” he said.

When asked whose name was submitted, Mr Anwar told reporters to ask Dr Mahathir as he was also awaiting the name of former Johor chief minister Osman Sapian’s replacement.

“You’ll have to ask Dr Mahathir. The candidate has to be approved by the sultan (of Johor). He hasn’t approved it yet because he is on holiday,” Mr Anwar said.

On April 10, Dr Mahathir said the power to select a replacement for Mr Osman lies with the ruling party and not the sultan.

His comments appeared to be in response to a tweet by Johor Crown Prince Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim, who said Mr Osman was replaced on the orders of his father, Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar, who has absolute prerogative to appoint the head of the Johor government. THE MALAYSIAN INSIGHT