Malaysia's Mahathir Mohamad called Sunday for an urgent Parliament sitting to contest the appointment of a former ally as the country's next prime minister under a new Malay-majority coalition that could further split the nation following the collapse of his multiracial reformist alliance.

Malaysia's king has appointed seasoned politician Muhyiddin Yassin as the new prime minister, trumping Mahathir Mohamad's bid to return to power after a week of political turmoil that followed his resignation as prime minister.

Mahathir Mohamad said Wednesday that he will form a new nonpartisan government if he is elected to return as Malaysia's prime minister, as the king completed two days of consultations with lawmakers to resolve a political vacuum caused by the abrupt collapse of Mahathir's ruling coalition.

Mahathir Mohamad says he will return as Malaysia's prime minister if he has majority support from lawmakers.

After months of resisting pressure to hand over the premiership to his named successor, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad finally quit this week. But in a confounding twist, the 94-year-old leader emerged stronger than before, while his ruling alliance, which won a historic vote about two years ago, met its Waterloo.