Abdullah Badawi overstaying his welcome: Dr. Mahathir

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) - - Malaysia's former premier Mahathir Mohamad said Wednesday he never intended his successor Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to serve more than one term and suggested he should stand down.
Abdullah, who has had a very public falling out with the veteran leader, will contest for his second term in general elections expected to be held in March.
Mahathir previously said he made a mistake in picking Abdullah, and should have opted for influential deputy prime minister Najib Razak.
"That was my thinking, since (Abdullah) was older than Najib, he should be PM for one term and then Najib should be able to take over," he told a press conference.
"I know it takes time to implement plans and projects but I think if that is to be used as an excuse to stay in power for 18 years then that will not be very welcome."
Abdullah won a landslide victory in 2004 polls when voters were enthused by his plans to fight corruption, but since then he has been widely criticised for inaction and suffered a steep tumble in popularity.
In recent months he has faced an unprecedented wave of public protests over the rights of minority ethnic Indians, as well as electoral reform and rising food and fuel prices.
"They see a government that is retreating and they want to take advantage," Mahathir said of the street rallies which would have been unthinkable during his term in power which ended in 2003 after more than two decades.
Abdullah was Mahathir's hand-picked successor when he stepped down, but after the new leader dumped several of his pet projects he began launching accusations of economic mismanagement, nepotism and corruption.

Dr M: Be more selective

The Star
PUTRAJAYA: Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad is willing to help Barisan Nasional campaign in the next general election provided candidates fielded by the coalition are “clean, honest and straight”.
The former prime minister said he would only want to campaign for candidates who he believed could bring good to the people.
“I believe that people who support the Barisan should be a little bit more selective. They should think, use wisdom in choosing the people they want to support.
“If there are dead wood and corrupt politicians being fielded as candidates, the people should not support them, not even if they are representing Barisan,” he told reporters after a preview of his latest book entitled Dr Mahathir’s selected letters to World Leaders at the Perdana Leadership Foundation yesterday.
Dr Mahathir said it was his hope to see the people “using their power as voters” to make changes to the leadership in Barisan and Umno as this was the only way to “clean” the government, claiming “cleansing” could not come from within the party as “everything now is being controlled and any contrary views will not be heard”.
“There is a risk in saying all these things and there will be a chorus of people who will curse me, including some of my former ministers.
“But I hope we will love this country enough to vote for the best candidate,” he said.
Asked if it was true that there was a gentleman's agreement when he resigned in 2003 that Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi would only stay as Prime Minister for only one term, Dr Mahathir said:
“Even if I said that such an agreement was made, I cannot prove it but that was my thinking since he was older than Najib, he should be the PM for a term and then Najib should be able to take over.”
On racial issues, Dr Mahathir said Malaysia had never really attained racial harmony but was able to keep it within control, adding there were quarters that have begun to use religion when taking action.
On his book, he said it contained 70 letters, all correspondence with world leaders on the crises and conflicts in the Middle East during his tenure as the prime minister.
The 239-page book contains letters to and from Dr Mahathir to, among others, former French president Jacques Chirac, Prince Charles the Prince of Wales, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, former United States President Bill Clinton and current President George W. Bush.