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LAST STAND?: Dr Mahathir's bombshell resignation and his call for an uprising of sorts have so far failed to ignite the revolution he was hoping for against his chosen successor. -- PHOTO: AFP
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KUALA LUMPUR - TWO days after quitting, former Umno chief Mahathir Mohamad has suggested another way of forcing his successor Abdullah Badawi to step down.
The ex-prime minister has posted a 10-point argument on his blog, Chedet.com, that Barisan Nasional (BN) MPs should hop out of the coalition but not join the opposition.
As independent MPs, they would then be free to state their stand on the policies of both the government and the opposition coalition Pakatan Rakyat, he wrote.
The Abdullah administration would fall if enough MPs were to leave BN, and so deprive the ruling coalition of its simple majority in Parliament.
'A new government can only be formed if this is agreed to by those who (have) left BN because they carry enough votes to decide whether BN or the Pakatan will acquire the majority in Parliament,' he wrote.
'If BN replaces Abdullah with somebody who is brave, those who have left the coalition can give their support back to BN so it can become the government again.
'This is one way to force Abdullah to resign. After this, all who hopped (out of BN) can return to their respective parties. Believe me, those from the BN component parties who supported the opposition during the 12th general election will (give) their support to BN after Abdullah is no longer PM.'
Tun Dr Mahathir has said he will only return to Umno after Datuk Seri Abdullah is removed as party president, BN chairman and Malaysia's prime minister, Malaysiakini said.
The former premier appealed to BN representatives not to join the Pakatan Rakyat, saying there was nothing in it for them if they did so.
'What will happen to all the BN party-hoppers? They won't become PM because surely the Pakatan leader will become PM. Other Pakatan members will also become ministers and deputy ministers,' he said.
'How many of these posts remain available for BN hoppers? Surely not all of them will get a post. They will continue to be Pakatan followers,' he was quoted as saying.
Dr Mahathir's bombshell resignation on Monday from the party he led for 22 years came with a call for other fellow members to quit en masse. The party, however, appears to have rallied behind Datuk Seri Abdullah, with Umno lawmakers backing the embattled Premier.
Tun Dr Mahathir, who has become increasingly vehement in his criticism of his successor, said he was leaving Umno in an attempt to force the latter out.
The resignation came three days after the country's Attorney-General was ordered to investigate the former premier and five others on possible offences over the appointment of judges during his term of office.
The political uncertainties have added to speculation over whether the BN coalition can keep its stranglehold on power following its worst showing ever in the March 8 general election, when it lost control of five states and its two-thirds majority in Parliament.
ASSOCIATED PRESS, AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE
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