PUTRAJAYA: Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has vowed to keep his promise to step down as prime minister before the end of his term, unless “someone points a gun to my head” and pressured him to carry on.
He pointed out that he had previously given an undertaking that he would pass the baton on as soon as the situation in the country was stable, and that he intended to keep his word.
“Maybe two years, three years, I don’t know yet. But we are working on that,“ he told a press conference after attending a roundtable dialogue with representatives of international chambers of commerce today.
“Unless they push me to a corner and put a gun to my head and ask me to continue until I finish the term, I will step down. I will keep my promise.”
Mahathir was asked if he would consider staying on as premier following calls by various quarters for him to complete the full term.
Among others, the opposition bloc of Umno and PAS as well as PKR deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali have openly expressed support for Mahathir to complete his term.
A local English daily had also today reported that a group of opposition politicians comprising members of Umno, PAS and Gabungan Parti Sarawak had met Mahathir on Tuesday to pledge their full support for him to stay on until the next general election.
Asked to comment on this supposed “secret meeting”, Mahathir appeared surprised that the matter became public knowledge.
“Did you spy on me? The meeting did happen, but I met everyone, including NGOs, not just the opposition. And as you know, PAS president (Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang) has been saying he supports me all the time, nothing new,“ he said.
“They come to see me, so I met them. I (listened to) what they wanted to say, and a lot of them expressed support for me. Thank you very much.”
In the report, it was also claimed that among those present at the meeting were former Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein and PAS secretary-general Datuk Takiyuddin Hassan, and that a senior minister was also invited by Mahathir to attend.
Asked if the minister in question was Mohamed Azmin, Mahathir said: “This is a secret meeting, I can’t tell you.”
One of the pledges made by Pakatan Harapan during campaigning for the last general election was that Mahathir would make way for PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim after two years in office.
In an interview with CNBC in Bangkok last month, Mahathir said he would step down “within three years”.
He said he needed three years to reduce the country’s debts.
