Published August 28, 2008
Razaleigh, Mahathir call on Abdullah to step down
PAS endorses Anwar as the Opposition's leader in Parliament
By S JAYASANKARAN IN KUALA LUMPUR

Email this article

Print article

Feedback
ANWAR Ibrahim's landslide victory in his hometown of Permatang Pauh in Penang on Tuesday has renewed calls for the resignation of Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

Mr Abdullah: Umno's defeat in his home state Penang has added to the pressure on him to resign since the National Front's disastrous outing in March general election
Anwar defeated Arif Shah Omar Shah from Mr Abdullah's ruling United Malays National Organisation (Umno) by a majority of 15,651 votes, easily surpassing the 13,300 majority enjoyed by his wife Wan Azizah Wan Ismail in March 8 general election.
Mr Abdullah, who is also Umno president, also hails from the state of Penang, and Umno's defeat there has added to the pressure faced by him.
Anwar was also endorsed yesterday by Parti Islam Se-Malaysia as leader of the anti-government alliance despite reservations among some sections of the Islamic party about the 'rainbow alliance' of which they are a part.
However, political analysts say that Anwar may struggle to hold his coalition together, let alone find the 30 defectors from the ranks of government MPs he needs to join him to win power. But he is not the only one with problems.
Leading the charge against Mr Abdullah yesterday was former finance minister Razaleigh Hamzah who delivered a searing rebuke to both Mr Abdullah and Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak, who led the campaign against Anwar.
Tengku Razaleigh, a prince from Kelantan state, has made no secret of his desire to challenge Mr Abdullah for Umno's presidency in party polls scheduled for December.
Calling Anwar's victory 'a landslide loss' that was shocking because it was 'despite the mobilisation of the entire leadership and resources' of Umno, Tengku Razaleigh put it starkly: 'It is time to face the music; it is we who have been buried.'
The latter was a sarcastic jibe at Khairy Jamaluddin, the deputy Umno Youth chief and Mr Abdullah's son-in-law, who had promised to 'bury' Anwar in Permatang Pauh.
'Today's report card delivered to the Prime Minister, who is accountable also as Liaison Chief of Umno Penang and chairman of the Barisan Nasional (National Front), is impossible to hide,' said Tengku Razaleigh.
'He does not have the minimal credibility needed to run the country day by day, let alone to take it in the new directions we need to go in a complex world. He may not have the credibility needed to keep the country together. This dangerous situation cannot continue and it will not.'
Mr Abdullah had come under pressure to step down after the National Front's disastrous outing in the general election. But he blunted the criticism by promising to hand over power to Mr Najib in 2010.
Former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad also called on Mr Abdullah to resign yesterday, warning that the results of Permatang Pauh merely confirmed that Umno and the Front were losing support and that this was a national trend that, if left unchecked, could spell trouble for the ruling coalition during the next general election.
It isn't clear if the calls for Mr Abdullah's blood will reach critical mass, but it could help Tengku Razaleigh get the necessary nominations to be allowed to challenge Mr Abdullah for the party presidency.
According to Umno rules, a contender for the presidency needs nominations from 58 divisions to contest. It looked unlikely before, but Anwar's victory could goad a fearful Umno into looking for a saviour.
Meanwhile, Anwar is expected to be sworn in as a Member of Parliament today in an event that will mark his return to the Lower House after a lapse of 10 years. Once made opposition leader, he will take his place in Parliament directly opposite Mr Abdullah.