Abdullah may strengthen grip under rule changes

Abdullah may strengthen grip under rule changes

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): Malaysia's Deputy Premier Abdullah Ahmad
Badawi has improved his chances of becoming the next prime
minister after ruling party leaders endorsed proposals to delay
internal elections, politicians and analysts said Tuesday.

The Supreme Council of the United Malays National Organization
(UMNO), chaired by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, agreed late
Monday that elections for the council and for top party officers
would be held just once during a parliamentary term.

The party, whose president and deputy president are
automatically also prime minister and deputy premier, will hold a
special general assembly Nov. 18 to debate the proposed changes
to the UMNO constitution.

If approved they would mean that party leadership elections in
2003 would be scrapped -- meaning that Abdullah cannot face any
direct challenge to his post from within the party until after
the next general election.

Mahathir, aged 74 and in power since 1981, said after the
November 1999 election that this would be his last parliamentary
term in office. General elections must be held at least every
five years but can be held sooner.

In May, UMNO's general assembly re-elected Mahathir as party
president and chose Abdullah as deputy president after accepting
controversial advice from the Supreme Council that there should
be no contest for the two top posts in the interest of unity.

Under the party's existing constitution, leadership elections
are held every three years.

Despite his status as heir apparent, the 60-year-old Abdullah
is seen as lacking a strong powerbase in the party which has
ruled as part of a coalition since independence in 1957.

Malacca Chief Minister and Supreme Council member Ali Rustam
confirmed that the amendments, if approved, mean there will be no
more elections for senior party posts till after the next general
election.

He said the aim was to concentrate UMNO's energies on national
development without the distraction of party polls.

"Dr Mahathir is trying to show to Malaysia that Abdullah is
capable of replacing him," said Mohammad Agus Yusoff, a political
science lecturer at the National University of Malaysia.

"UMNO is finding a formula to strengthen the position of Pak
Lah (a nickname for Abdullah)."

Mohammad Agus said there had been considerable disagreement
behind the scenes over Monday's Supreme Council decision but
people "seem not to have been brave enough" to express it.

"It's not yet finalized," he said, referring to the Nov. 18
general assembly.

An UMNO official said the proposal would give Abdullah more
time to build up his standing in UMNO.

"It will definitely strengthen his position. It's also a
message to party delegates to take the elections seriously as
it's going to be held only every four or five years," he said.

The Supreme Council agreed that party elections would be held
within a year after future general elections. It rejected a
suggestion to broaden the franchise for the party elections to
some 30,000 members, instead of only some 2,000 delegates
currently.