Malaysia’s former interior minister Muhyiddin Yassin, a Malay nationalist politician backed by the corruption-tarnished former ruling party, was sworn in as prime minister on Sunday (March 1), after the king picked him to replace 94-year-old Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

The swearing-in capped a week of turmoil that began with Dr Mahathir’s resignation in an apparent bid to consolidate power, but ended with him sidelined and complaining of betrayal after decades dominating Malaysian politics.