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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Malaysian PM 'to quit in March' | Malaysian PM 'to quit in March' |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Malaysia's Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has announced that he will step down from office in March. | Malaysia's Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has announced that he will step down from office in March. |
| The move will effectively hand power of the ruling National Front coalition, and therefore the job of prime minister, to his deputy Najib Razak. | |
| Mr Abdullah has been under pressure to quit since disastrous election results earlier this year. | Mr Abdullah has been under pressure to quit since disastrous election results earlier this year. |
| He has faced discontent within his own party, and also an increasingly strong opposition led by Anwar Ibrahim. | He has faced discontent within his own party, and also an increasingly strong opposition led by Anwar Ibrahim. |
| "I am now announcing I will not seek the presidency of Umno [United Malays National Organisation] in the upcoming elections. I want a party that is united," Mr Abdullah told a news conference. | |
| By tradition, the president of Umno is leader of the coalition government and therefore prime minister as long as the coalition is in power. | By tradition, the president of Umno is leader of the coalition government and therefore prime minister as long as the coalition is in power. |
| "I hope Najib will be my successor, I believe he can win," Mr Abdullah told reporters. | "I hope Najib will be my successor, I believe he can win," Mr Abdullah told reporters. |
| Switching allegiance | Switching allegiance |
| Mr Abdullah resisted pressure to resign in the immediate aftermath of the election result in March, in which the government lost its two-thirds majority in parliament for the first time since Malaysian independence. | Mr Abdullah resisted pressure to resign in the immediate aftermath of the election result in March, in which the government lost its two-thirds majority in parliament for the first time since Malaysian independence. |
| Many of Umno's traditional supporters from the majority Malay community switched allegiance to Anwar Ibrahim's multiracial coalition, the People's Alliance. | Many of Umno's traditional supporters from the majority Malay community switched allegiance to Anwar Ibrahim's multiracial coalition, the People's Alliance. |
| In the months after the polls, Mr Abdullah hammered out a plan for a transition of power to Mr Najib in 2010, but his critics still remained unsatisfied. | In the months after the polls, Mr Abdullah hammered out a plan for a transition of power to Mr Najib in 2010, but his critics still remained unsatisfied. |
| Mr Anwar is now threatening to bring down the government with parliamentary defections from the National Front. | Mr Anwar is now threatening to bring down the government with parliamentary defections from the National Front. |