KUALA LUMPUR • Malaysian ruling party leader Anwar Ibrahim, who cut a deal to become the country's next prime minister ahead of last year's election, said he should take power around May next year.
"There is an understanding that it should be around that time, but I don't think I should be too petty about the exact month," Datuk Seri Anwar said in an interview with Bloomberg Television's Ms Haslinda Amin in Kuala Lumpur yesterday, when asked whether the transition would happen two years after Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad took power.
"But there is this understanding that he will resign at the appropriate time," he added.
Mr Anwar, 72, dismissed reports that Minister of Economic Affairs Azmin Ali or Mr Mukhriz Mahathir, the Prime Minister's son, would be considered for the role instead of him. Mr Anwar's political secretary had been briefly detained in July over leaked sex videos allegedly featuring Datuk Seri Azmin, deputy leader of the ruling Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR). The PKR is one of four parties in the Pakatan Harapan ruling coalition.
"There is no sign of any party introducing or promoting or lobbying for other names," Mr Anwar said. "This does not stop other individuals with ambitions with their own design. And this to me is quite irrelevant. Whether it has been discussed, whether it has been given legitimacy, the answer is no."
Questions over when Mr Anwar will take power have loomed over Malaysian politics ever since Tun Dr Mahathir led the coalition to a surprise victory last year.
The conflict between Dr Mahathir's two likely successors has raised the possibility the 94-year-old will extend his stay in power as the ruling party struggles to contain internal dissent. Dr Mahathir has repeatedly promised to hand over power to Mr Anwar, without setting a timeline. He has said he will step down once he finds the country's situation is on an even keel, which could take two to three years.
Mr Anwar yesterday urged a review of the contract for the East Coast Rail Link, which has been a feature of the trial of former premier Najib Razak. Najib has been accused of offering projects to China in exchange for help in resolving troubled state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad's (1MDB) debt.
Dr Mahathir has made the 1MDB investigation a priority. He has vowed to recoup billions of dollars allegedly lost through the fund and bring to book the culprits in the scandal.
The government has brought charges against Najib, who faces 42 counts of corruption and money laundering, along with fugitive financier Jho Low, and 17 current and former directors of Goldman Sachs.
A witness at Najib's trial said China's State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission was offered projects including the East Coast Rail Link, which had been put on hold by Dr Mahathir before being resumed at a lower cost of RM44 billion (S$14.5 billion).
Mr Anwar said government policy must also ensure fair distribution of wealth, fight corruption to address state leakages and reform the sedition law.
He told Bloomberg that the government must also allay fears and concerns of ethnic Malays, noting that affirmative action is vital for all races to escape poverty.
Since taking over the government, Pakatan Harapan has struggled to maintain the support of the country's Malay Muslim population, who make up the country's majority.
Backlash from Malay groups forced the administration to backtrack from its promises to ratify international treaties on anti-discrimination and crimes against humanity.
BLOOMBERG
