ALOR SETAR, May 11 — Kedah Pakatan Harapan (PH) chairman Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir took his oath of office as state mentri besar for the second time today.

The Jitra assemblyman and Jerlun MP was sworn in before the Ruler of Kedah, Sultan Sallehuddin Badlishah, as the 13th mentri besar after four-party PH’s sweeping victory in the 14th general election.

The ceremony took place at 4pm in the Balairung Seri Kecil of Istana Anak Bukit here.

Mukhriz first took the oath of office on May 6, 2013, under the Barisan Nasional (BN) banner.

He was ousted by then-BN colleague Datuk Seri Ahmad Bashah Md Hanipah on February 3, 2016 for being critical of its chairman Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s policies. 

Last night, Mukhriz’s father Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad was sworn in as the country’s seventh prime minister before the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Muhammad V in Kuala Lumpur.

During a press conference later, he said there were defections from Opposition parties BN and PAS, and that PH was able to form a government as it was demonstrably the side with a "solid bloc” of state assemblymen.

PH commands 18 seats in the 36-seat assembly, while the unaligned BN and PAS have the same number, albeit 15 and three, respectively.

"In this case, the solid bloc is the one that counts. I think the other consideration is that PH is also the ruling government in Putrajaya.

"So I think it behoves the powers that be in Kedah to pick a state government that has direct links with the federal government. That would be us,” said Mukhriz.

He insisted his was not a minority government even though no single side has the minimum needed to claim a simple majority. Instead, he called it a divided government as the seats were equally split.

Mukhriz urged the state Opposition to fulfil their important role in the state legislative assembly, but hoped that they would display political maturity and not set out to only frustrate his administration.

He said it was imperative for both sides of the political divide to work together and develop the state, and welcomed any constructive criticism from the Opposition.

"I would like to plead with the Opposition to work as a check and balance for us within the state administration,” said Mukhriz.

The Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) deputy president has promised to continue some of the policies, projects and plans already implemented or in the midst of implementation by the defeated BN government.

His first order of priority is to address the non-revenue water (NRW) issue, which has plagued Malaysia’s rice-bowl state in recent years, leading to multiple water disruptions.

Kedah’s NRW is considered to be the highest in the country, with a loss of around 50 per cent.

"We may have a new administration at the state and federal levels but we have been around the block. I am confident that we have the experience to administer both levels of government far better than BN.

"At the same time, I remember there were a few policies that I launched as mentri besar when I was still with BN. We will look into this and if needed, we will continue them with the support of the federal government,” said Mukhriz.