Musa backs bid for top posts

Musa backs bid for top posts

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and his preferred successor Abdullah Ahmad Badawi should face a contest for the top two ruling party posts in May, a veteran politician says.

Former deputy premier Musa Hitam, in an interview in Sunday's Star newspaper, also predicted that Mahathir's old rival Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah would challenge either the premier or Abdullah in the UMNO leadership elections.

The United Malays National Organization has dominated politics since independence in 1957. Its president and deputy president are automatically prime minister and deputy premier.

The result of May's meeting is expected to point to Mahathir's likely successor. The premier, in power for 18 years, says this will be his last term.

Musa is the second former deputy premier to come out against a controversial "no contest" ruling by the party's top brass last month. Abdul Ghafar Baba has also said Mahathir and Abdullah should be ready to face a challenge.