Anwar election puts political pressure on Malaysian PM

Anwar election puts political pressure on Malaysian PM
27 Aug, 2008

Malaysia's Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is facing calls to quit from within his ruling party after opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim scored a landslide by-election victory.

Mr Anwar won the vote to return to parliament despite an intense campaign mounted by the Barisan Nasional coalition, which he has promised to unseat within a month with the help of defecting lawmakers.

The failure to check Mr Anwar has put more pressure on Mr Abdullah, who has fought to hold on to his job since March general elections in which the opposition gained unprecedented ground.

A senior member of the United Malays National Organisation, Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, says Mr Abdullah doesn't have the minimal credibility needed to run the country day by day, let alone take it in the new directions.

He says this dangerous situation cannot continue.

Mr Razaleigh says the coalition's by-election campaign, criticised for its sodomy allegations against Mr Anwar, has embarrassed and divided the nation with its ugliness.