2018 in Malaysia is Malaysia's 61st anniversary of
its independence and 55th anniversary of
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
's formation.
Incumbents
Federal Level
State level
Events
January
February
March
April
May
14th Malaysian general election
The 2018 Malaysian General Election, formally known as the 14th Malaysian General Election (), was held on Wednesday, 9 May 2018, for members of the 14th Parliament of Malaysia. At stake were all 222 seats in the Dewan Rakyat (the legislature' ...
(GE14) :
* 9 May—The
14th general election was held on this day. For the first time in the country's history, the
Barisan Nasional
The National Front ( ms, Barisan Nasional; abbrev: BN) is a political coalition of Malaysia that was founded in 1973 as a coalition of centre-right and right-wing political parties. It is also the third largest political coalition with 30 se ...
coalition was defeated by the opposition coalition
Pakatan Harapan
The Alliance of Hope ( ms, Pakatan Harapan; abbrev: PH; stylized as HARAPAN) is a Malaysian political coalition consisting of centre-left political parties which was formed in 2015 to succeed the Pakatan Rakyat coalition. It has been the ...
, only winning 79 seats against Pakatan Harapan's 121. The
Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party
The Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS; ms, Parti Islam Se-Malaysia; ms, ڤرتي إسلام سمليسيا, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset) is an Islamist political party in Malaysia. As the party focused on Islamic fundamentalism, PAS's ...
won 18 seats while independents won 3 seats. Former prime minister
Mahathir Mohamad
Mahathir bin Mohamad ( ms, محاضير بن محمد, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset; ; born 10 July 1925) is a Malaysian politician, author, and physician who served as the 4th and 7th Prime Minister of Malaysia. He held the office ...
, who led Pakatan Harapan to victory, manage to defeat his protege
Najib Razak
Dato' Sri Haji Mohammad Najib bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak ( ms, محمد نجيب بن عبد الرزاق, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset, ; born 23 July 1953) is a Malaysian politician who served as the 6th prime minister of Malaysi ...
,
* 10 May --
Mahathir Mohamad
Mahathir bin Mohamad ( ms, محاضير بن محمد, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset; ; born 10 July 1925) is a Malaysian politician, author, and physician who served as the 4th and 7th Prime Minister of Malaysia. He held the office ...
is sworn in as the seventh
Prime Minister of Malaysia
The prime minister of Malaysia ( ms, Perdana Menteri Malaysia; ms, ڤردان منتري مليسيا, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset) is the head of government of Malaysia. The prime minister directs the executive branch of the fede ...
at 2130 hours (
GMT+8
UTC+08:00 is an identifier for a time offset from UTC of +08:00.
With an estimated population of 1.708 billion living within the time zone, roughly 24% of the world population, it is the most populous time zone in the world, as well as a ...
), as he becomes the world's oldest elected state leader at the age of 92. This marks his return to the position after holding the post previously for 22 years, from 1981 to 2003.
* 12 May --
** A Council of Eminent Persons is formed as government's advisory board, board members are
**#
Tun Daim Zainuddin, former Finance Minister of Malaysia
**#
Tan Sri Zeti Akhtar Aziz, former Governor of Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM)
**# Tan Sri Hassan Marican, former president and CEO of Petronas
**#
Robert Kuok
Robert Kuok Hock Nien (; Hokchew: ''Guoh24 Houk5 Nieng55''; born 6 October 1923), is a Malaysian business magnate and investor. Since 1973, Kuok has lived in Hong Kong. According to ''Forbes'', his net worth is estimated at $12.6 billion as of ...
, Hong-Kong based Malaysian billionaire tycoon
**#
Professor Jomo Kwame Sundaram, prominent economist
**
Lim Guan Eng
Lim Guan Eng (; born 8 December 1960) is a Malaysian politician and accountant from the Democratic Action Party (DAP), a component party of the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Bagan, Member of ...
,
Muhyiddin Yassin
Tan Sri Dato' Haji Mahiaddin bin Md Yasin (born 15 May 1947), commonly known as Muhyiddin bin Muhammad Yassin ( ms, محيي الدين بن محمد ياسين, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset; ), is a Malaysian politician who serv ...
, and
Mohamad Sabu
Mohamad bin Sabu ( Jawi: محمد بن سابو), commonly known as Mat Sabu, is a Malaysian politician who has served as the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security in the Pakatan Harapan (PH) administration under Prime Minister Anwar Ibra ...
are named for three top cabinet posts
** Former prime minister
Najib Razak
Dato' Sri Haji Mohammad Najib bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak ( ms, محمد نجيب بن عبد الرزاق, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset, ; born 23 July 1953) is a Malaysian politician who served as the 6th prime minister of Malaysi ...
and wife
Rosmah Mansor
Rosmah binti Mansor ( Jawi: روسمه بنت منصور; born 10 December 1951) is the second wife of former Prime Minister of Malaysia, Najib Razak. Like her husband, she became implicated in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad scandal. On 1 Se ...
are barred from leaving the country
** Najib resigns as UMNO and BN chief
* 13 May --
** Mahathir instructs Inland Revenue Board to return taxes collected 'illegally'.
* 14 May --
** Attorney-general
Mohamed Apandi Ali
Mohamed Apandi bin Ali (born 11 February 1950) is a Malaysian politician who was the Attorney General of Malaysia from 2015 to 2018. He announced the shocking news that he had cleared then prime minister Najib Razak of any wrongdoing in the 1Mala ...
goes on unrecorded leave, duties taken over by solicitor-general
** MACC chief Dzulkifli Ahmad resigns
** Treasurer general Irwan Serigar Abdullah's contract shortened, transferred to Public Service Department
** Mahathir says laws on fake news will be clearly defined
** Mahathir says political appointments in government-linked companies will be reviewed.
* 15 May --
** Audit Department declassifies its 1MDB report
** Council of Eminent Persons sets up a committee on institutional reforms, committee includes:
**# Retired judge of Court of Appeal Datuk KC Vohrah;
**# Retired judge of the Court of Appeal and Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) Commissioner Datuk Mah Weng Kwai;
**# National Patriot Association President Brigadier General (Rtd) Datuk Mohamed Arshad Raji;
**# University Malaya Tunku Abdul Rahman Professor of Law Emeritus Professor Datuk Dr Shad Saleem Faruqi;
**# Hakam President and Bar Council former President Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan
** Apandi Ali, Irwan Serigar, Dzulkifli and former IGP Khalid Abu Bakar barred from leaving the country.
* 16 May --
** Pakatan Harapan ''de facto'' leader and former
Deputy Prime Minister
A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...
Anwar Ibrahim
Anwar bin Ibrahim ( ms, انور بن ابراهيم, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset, IPA: ; born 10 August 1947) is a Malaysian politician who has served as the 10th Prime Minister of Malaysia since November 2022. He served as the 12 ...
is released from prison after being pardoned by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. He had served three years of his prison sentence.
** 1MDB president
Arul Kanda Kandasamy
Azrul Kanda Kandasamy or better known as his birth name, Arul Kanda is the former president and chief executive officer of 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a company owned by Minister of Finance (Incorporated) (Malaysia), a corporate body of ...
is also barred from leaving the country
** Police search Najib's house and seize handbags and clothes
** Government announces GST will be zero-rated effective, 1 June 2018
** Mahathir to sack 17,000 political appointees from civil service
** Registrar of Societies approves Pakatan Harapan's registration.
** Ministries instructed to cease use of 1Malaysia slogan
** Kedai Rakyat 1Malaysia 2.0 (KR1M) programme ceased
** Board meetings of the Cooperatives Commission of Malaysia and committees which have political appointees to be postponed.
* 17 May
** Police search at Najib's house continues
** Finance Ministry initiates fiscal reforms.
* 20 May
** Former executive of PetroSaudi whistleblower Swiss national
Xavier Justo meets Mahathir
* 21 May
** Special task force formed to investigate the 1MDB scandal as well as to prosecute wrongdoers and retrieve related assets. Task force would be jointly headed by former attorney-general
Abdul Gani Patail
Tan Sri Datuk Seri Panglima Abdul Gani bin Patail (born 6 October 1955) is a Malaysian prosecutor. He was the Attorney General of Malaysia from 2002 to 2015, the first from Sabah to hold the position (hailing from Lahad Datu and was born in L ...
, former MACC head Abu Kassim Mohamed, current MACC head Mohd Shukri Abdull and former special branch head Abdul Hamid Bador.
** Deputy prime minister
Wan Azizah Wan Ismail
Wan Azizah binti Wan Ismail ( Jawi: وان عزيزة بنت وان إسماعيل; born 3 December 1952) is a Malaysian politician who is the spouse of Anwar Ibrahim, the current Prime Minister of Malaysia. She also served as the 12th Deputy ...
and several federal ministers officially sworn in as members of cabinet.
*22 May
** Former prime minister
Najib Razak
Dato' Sri Haji Mohammad Najib bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak ( ms, محمد نجيب بن عبد الرزاق, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset, ; born 23 July 1953) is a Malaysian politician who served as the 6th prime minister of Malaysi ...
is brought in for questioning at the
Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission
The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission ( ms, Suruhanjaya Pencegahan Rasuah Malaysia), abbreviated MACC or ''SPRM'', (formerly known as Anti-Corruption Agency, ACA or ''Badan Pencegah Rasuah'', ''BPR'') is a government agency in Malaysia that ...
(MACC).
June
July
August
September
* 1 September - Sales and services tax (SST) replaced
Goods and Services Tax (GST).
* 8 – 15 September -
The Inaugural Asia Pacific Masters Games was held in
Penang
Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Ma ...
.
* 11–22 September -
Sukma Games
The Sukma Games ( ms, Sukan Malaysia, lit.: Malaysian Games) is a biennial national multi-sport event involving young athletes from Malaysian 13 member states and the Federal territory. The games is regulated by the National Sports Council of ...
was held in
Perak
Perak () is a state of Malaysia on the west coast of the Malay Peninsula. Perak has land borders with the Malaysian states of Kedah to the north, Penang to the northwest, Kelantan and Pahang to the east, and Selangor to the south. Thailand's ...
.
* 13 September -
Muhammad Shafee Abdullah
Tan Sri Dato' Sri (Dr.) Mohamed Shafee bin Mohamed Abdullah (born 4 February 1952) is a Malaysian lawyer. He is a well-known lawyer who recently defended the former Prime Minister Najib Razak, who was charged with money laundering to the tune ...
, the lawyer of former prime minister
Najib Razak
Dato' Sri Haji Mohammad Najib bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak ( ms, محمد نجيب بن عبد الرزاق, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset, ; born 23 July 1953) is a Malaysian politician who served as the 6th prime minister of Malaysi ...
has been charged with money laundering by anti-corruption agents looking into how billions of dollars went missing from state fund
1Malaysia Development Berhad
1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB; ) is an insolvent Malaysian strategic development company, wholly owned by the Minister of Finance (Incorporated).
1MDB was established to drive strategic initiatives for long-term economic development f ...
(1MDB).
* 20 September - Former prime minister
Najib Razak
Dato' Sri Haji Mohammad Najib bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak ( ms, محمد نجيب بن عبد الرزاق, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset, ; born 23 July 1953) is a Malaysian politician who served as the 6th prime minister of Malaysi ...
has appeared in court facing 25 charges related to the
1MDB scandal, including abuse of power and money laundering.
* 26 September - Local independent publishing house ZI Publications has acquired the rights to publish a Bahasa Malaysia translation of Tom Wright and Bradley Hope's ''Billion Dollar Whale: The Man Who Fooled Wall Street, Hollywood, and the World''.
October
November
* 6 November - Prime minister
Mahathir Mohamad
Mahathir bin Mohamad ( ms, محاضير بن محمد, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset; ; born 10 July 1925) is a Malaysian politician, author, and physician who served as the 4th and 7th Prime Minister of Malaysia. He held the office ...
visited
Japan, and received a medal of the Emperor of Japan.
* 15 November - Mahathir came back to Kuala Lumpur since end the 33rd Asean summit in Singapore.
December
* 4 December - A gas piping explosion in one of the food outlet at Cityone Megamall in Kuching, Sarawak resulted in 3 deaths and 22 injuries.
*8 December - The Anti-ICERD Rally was organised by opposition right-wing political parties
Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS)
The Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS; ms, Parti Islam Se-Malaysia; ms, ڤرتي إسلام سمليسيا, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset) is an Islamist political party in Malaysia. As the party focused on Islamic fundamentalism, PA ...
and
United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), with the support of various non-governmental organisations in response to the
new Malaysian government's plan to ratify the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonizi ...
convention known as
(ICERD).
* 16 December - Mohd Hafiz Nor Azman, a 22-year-old motorcycle racer was killed in an accident when competing at the Petronas AAM Malaysian Cub Prix championships at Dataran Bandar Penawar, Johor.
* 17 December - Malaysia files criminal charges against
Goldman Sachs and two former executives over bond sales it organized for 1MDB.
* 18 December - High Court rejected former prime minister
Najib Razak
Dato' Sri Haji Mohammad Najib bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak ( ms, محمد نجيب بن عبد الرزاق, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset, ; born 23 July 1953) is a Malaysian politician who served as the 6th prime minister of Malaysi ...
’s request to get the letter of authorisation (fiat) on the appointment of lead prosecutor Sulaiman Abdullah, and his application for discovery of documents pertaining to the case.
National Day and Malaysia Day
National Day theme
Sayangi Malaysiaku (Love My Malaysia)
National Day parade
Putrajaya
Malaysia Day celebration
Kota Kinabalu
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = From top, left to right, bottom:Kota Kinabalu skyline, Wawasan intersection, Tun Mustapha Tower, Kota Kinabalu Coastal Highway, the Kota Kinabalu City Mosque, the Wism ...
,
Sabah
Sabah () is a state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indonesia to the south. The Federal Territory ...
Sports
* 16 – 21 January –
2018 Malaysian Badminton Masters
* 3 – 10 March –
2018 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup
The 2018 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup was the 27th edition of the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup. It was held in Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia from 3 to 10 March 2018.
The number of teams for this year's cup was the same as last year's tournament where six teams compete ...
* 18 – 25 March –
2018 Tour de Langkawi
The 2018 Tour de Langkawi was the 23rd edition of an annual professional road bicycle racing stage race held in Malaysia since 1996. The race was run at the highest category apart from those races which make up the UCI World Tour, and was rated ...
* 26 June – 1 July –
2018 Malaysian Badminton Open
* 8 – 15 September –
2018 Asia Pacific Masters Games
The 2018 Asia Pacific Masters Games ( ms, Sukan Masters Asia Pasifik 2018), the inaugural edition of the Asia Pacific Masters Games, also known as Penang 2018, was held in the Malaysian state of Penang from 7 to 15 September 2018. Organised by t ...
* 11 – 22 September –
2018 Sukma Games
The 2018 Sukma Games, officially known as the 19th Sukma Games was a multi-sport event held in Perak from 11 to 22 September 2018. This was Perak's second time to host the Sukma Games and its first time since 1994.
The games was held from 11 to 2 ...
* 20 September – 7 October –
2018 AFC U-16 Championship
The 2018 AFC U-16 Championship was the 18th edition of the AFC U-16 Championship, the biennial international youth football championship organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the men's under-16 national teams of Asia. It took pl ...
* 6 – 13 October –
2018 Sultan of Johor Cup
The 2018 Sultan of Johor Cup was the eighth edition of the Sultan of Johor Cup, an international men's under–21 field hockey tournament in Malaysia. It was held in Johor Bahru, Malaysia from 6 to 13 October 2018.
As in previous editions, a tot ...
* 15 – 20 October –
2018 Sopma Games
* 4 November –
2018 Shell Malaysia Motorcycle Grand Prix
* 23 – 28 November –
2018 Para Sukma Games
* 25 November – 2018
Penang Bridge International Marathon
Deaths
* 25 January – - Actor
* 16 April –
Napsiah Omar
Napsiah binti Omar (21 April 1943 – 16 April 2018) was a Malaysian educator and politician.
The daughter of United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) activists, Napsiah was born in Negeri Sembilan. She studied zoology and botany at the Austra ...
– Malaysian politician
*6 May -
Lai Meng
Datuk Lai Kwai Yoon (; 29 September 1928 - 6 May 2018), known professionally as Lai Meng (), was a Malaysian actress. She appeared in many Malaysian and Singaporean films and TV shows, notably ''Empat Sekawan'', '' Ah Long Pte Ltd'', '' Money ...
* 8 September -
Abu Hassan Omar
Tan Sri Dato' Seri Haji Abu Hassan bin Omar ( ms, أبو حسن بن عمر, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset; 15 September 1940 – 8 September 2018) was a Malaysian politician from United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), a major co ...
- Malaysian Politician
* 14 October - - Singer
See also
*
2018
File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
*
2017 in Malaysia
2017 in Malaysia is Malaysia's 60th anniversary of its independence and 54th anniversary of its formation of Malaysia.
The following lists events from 2017 in Malaysia.
Incumbents
Federal level
* Yang di-Pertuan Agong:
** Sultan Muhammad V of ...
,
2019 in Malaysia
This is a list of events in the year 2019 in Malaysia.
Incumbents
Federal level
* Yang di-Pertuan Agong:
** Sultan Muhammad V of Kelantan (until 6 January)
** Al-Sultan Abdullah of Pahang (from 31 January)
* Raja Permaisuri Agong:
** Tun ...
*
History of Malaysia
Malaysia is located on a strategic sea lane that exposes it to global trade and various cultures. The name "Malaysia" is a modern concept, created in the second half of the 20th century. However, contemporary Malaysia regards the entire history ...
*
2018 in Malaysian football
The 2018 season of competitive association football in Malaysia.
Promotion and relegation
Pre-season
New and withdrawn teams
New teams
* Terengganu II (Liga Premier)
Withdrawn teams
* Sime Darby (Liga Premier)
* SAMB (Piala F ...
*
1Malaysia Development Berhad scandal
The 1Malaysia Development Berhad scandal, often referred to as the 1MDB scandal or just 1MDB, describes a corruption, bribery and money laundering conspiracy in which the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) was s ...
References
{{Asia topic, 2018 in
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
2010s in Malaysia
Years of the 21st century in Malaysia
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...