KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 25 — The “unity government” that sources asserted Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad was planning to form could be stillborn as a senior Umno leader is now calling for a fresh election to resolve the country’s political uncertainty.

On Twitter, Datuk Ahmad Maslan said the voice of the people was sacred.

“Dissolve Parliament. It’s the right choice,” he wrote when posting photographs of Umno MPs who were at the Istana Negara for an audience with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong earlier today.

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Umno and PAS have been angling for a coalition government with Bersatu that has pulled out of the Pakatan Harapan coalition but Ahmad’s remark suggested that this may no longer be the case.

Earlier, the Reuters news agency cited sources to report that interim PM Dr Mahathir was eyeing a “unity government” that would include parties from the entire political spectrum.

It is unclear if this is the same coalition government that was purportedly being planned on Sunday that would have excluded the main PKR, DAP and Amanah.

However, both Umno and PAS now say they would not join if DAP is included. Excluding any of the three would be difficult as they are among the largest parties in Parliament at the moment.

Dr Mahathir resigned unexpectedly yesterday after a Sunday full of political intrigue stemming from a suspected plot.

His political affiliation is also unclear at the moment after his resignation as Bersatu chairman was rejected by the party’s supreme council last night.

The Agong is interviewing the country’s federal lawmakers to determine who among them commanded the support of the majority needed to become the prime minister.