PM under new pressure to quit

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is under increasing pressure to quit, after being confronted by rare criticism from within his cabinet, as well as an opposition bid to seize power.
So far Abdullah has clung tenaciously to the job, and refused to negotiate with Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim, who has announced he has enough support from defecting lawmakers to topple the government.
But last week Abdullah faced an unprecedented challenge from within his cabinet, as four ministers spoke out against him at the Umno supreme council meeting. They told Abdullah at a meeting of the party's supreme council that "the political situation was not improving and that he should consider an earlier exit".
Umno information chief Muhammad Muhammad Taib confirmed the challenge took place and said Abdullah was saddened and visibly affected by it, but insisted he could ride out the crisis.
"The four of them spoke and said this to the prime minister... but it was not the majority speaking. There are more than 30 supreme council members and not all are in unison, asking the PM to resign," Muhammad told AFP.
"He listened. It was not the first time for him. He has his own intelligence report well prepared on what the feeling is at the grassroots level," he said.
Abdullah in July unveiled a plan to hand over to his deputy Najib Razak in mid-2010, but the strategy failed to quell calls for his ouster, and last week he indicated the timing was "flexible" and that he could depart earlier.
He handed over the important Finance Ministry post to Najib in a show of solidarity, but was hit with the challenge from his ministers just a day later.
Pak Lah's position 'untenable'
An Umno official from Abdullah's home state of Penang said the premier's position was now untenable and he would have to quit before the party holds leadership elections in December.
"Abdullah does not have any choice left. He has to go by year-end," said the senior official on condition of anonymity.
"Abdullah is now being viewed as a leader who has lost control of the party and government. "He cannot make any drastic moves to reel in party leaders who have openly gone against him by questioning the power transition agreement," he said.
Najib is widely tipped to replace Abdullah, with his new deputy likely to be Trade Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who has been one of the premier's most outspoken critics.
Muhyiddin was one of the ministers who reportedly challenged Abdullah at last week's meeting, along with Umno's youth wing chief Hishammuddin Hussein, women's wing chief Rafidah Aziz and Culture Minister Shafie Apdal.

tunku : the MTs who spoke up knew about the facts on the ground.they are not blind folded like others.i am sure that there are more who wanted to speak up but was stopped by najib at the meeting.i am amused at muhammad taib when he said pak lah has his intelligence report, if he had, bn had not been humiliated in the last general election.his intelligence is his son in-law and the 4th floor boys.he had agreed to step down much earlier from the 2010 plan right after the meeting but changed his mind because of his son in law, read here. i was quite surprised that hishammuddin spoke against pak lah,at last he had some brain of his own.khairy will make sure the father in-law stays till 2010 and he will try to make impossible things to possible to be the umno youth chief this december.