PETALING JAYA: Parties which formed the previous Perikatan Nasional government have submitted the statutory declarations (SDs) from their MPs on their choice of candidate for the next prime minister.

       The SDs from Barisan Nasional MPs were submitted to Istana Negara on Tuesday night after party leaders ended their meeting at the World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur just before midnight, said a source.

       Umno sources said the SDs were signed by all the MPs before they were submitted to the palace.

       “As we were already there in one room and the decision was unanimous, we decided not to waste any more time and get all the MPs to put their signatures and send them to Istana Negara.

       “The palace has received the SDs from all Barisan MPs which agreed on Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob as the candidate for the post of the ninth Prime Minister,” said the source.

       A Barisan meeting among all its MPs on Tuesday earlier agreed to unanimously support Ismail Sabri, who is the former deputy prime minister and defence minister, to be the next prime minister.

       Meanwhile, Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia MPs gathered in separate groups in a few places in the Klang Valley before sending their SDs together.

       “We don’t want any of the SDs from Bersatu to be declared null and void just because of technical reasons.

       “So, we are very careful to ensure all the SDs are in order before they are sent,” said a Bersatu supreme council member.

       On Tuesday, it was reported that 31 Bersatu MPs and four Perikatan Nasional-friendly Independents have signed SDs and left it to former prime minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who is Bersatu president, to decide who should succeed him.

       PAS deputy president Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man said all 18 of its MPs had sent their SDs to the palace.

       A Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) MP also confirmed that all its 18 MPs had also sent their SDs to Istana Negara.

       MPs had until 4pm yesterday to submit the name of a nominee they supported as the next premier.

       Dewan Rakyat Speaker Datuk Azhar Azizan Harun had earlier sent a letter to all MPs to submit in writing their choice of candidate to Istana Negara via fax, email or WhatsApp.

       The notice is to enable one of them, who commands the confidence of the majority, to be appointed as prime minister following Muhyiddin’s resignation as prime minister on Monday.

       PKR Lembah Pantai MP Fahmi Fadzil said his SD was submitted through email while his PKR colleague and Batu MP P. Prabakaran said he sent his via both email and fax.

       “The selection of the candidate for the prime minister’s post is in line with PKR’s stand which adheres to the Pakatan consensus, which is to nominate Anwar as the candidate,” said Prabakaran when contacted by Bernama.

       DAP organising secretary Anthony Loke said his party had submitted the SDs before the 4pm deadline.

       The Dewan Rakyat currently has 220 MPs after the deaths of two MPs last year – Datuk Liew Vui Keong (Batu Sapi) in October and Datuk Hasbullah Osman (Gerik) in November.

       As such, the candidate must have the support of at least 111 lawmakers for a simple majority to enable him to be appointed prime minister.