Malaysia's Anwar sworn in as member of parliament

KUALA LUMPUR -- Former Malaysian deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim was sworn in as a member of parliament on Monday after winning a by-election over the weekend.

The brief oath taking ceremony was held at the lower house of parliament in front of the other 221 serving lawmakers to the cheers and applause of fellow lawmakers from the ruling Pakatan Harapan coalition.

In a brief message, House Speaker Mohd Ariff Md Yusof expressed confidence in Anwar to contribute towards parliamentary reforms which the new government had pledged after taking power in the May general election.

"I am confident that you can contribute towards bringing parliamentary reforms to improve the prestige and uphold the dignity of this institution," he said.

Anwar won the by-election with a convincing manner by securing more than 70 percent of the votes, despite a low turnout of some 58 percent.