Gerakan president Dr Lim Keng Yaik has been asked not to resign from his post given the "current political climate" in the country, said a key party official today.

Party secretary-general Chia Kwang Chye said Lim had thought of making way for new leaders but the central executive committee later advised the top leader to reconsider his decision.

"The country and party still need him. Any drastic changes should be avoided," Chia told malaysiakini in an interview today.

He said the party chief has yet to make up his mind as there is still about a year's time to the next party election.

He added that party members at large want Lim to continue leading them as there are 'lingering' issues to be dealt with.

However, Chia did not elaborate on the 'lingering' issues beyond saying that they were mainly repercussions from the political crisis due to the sacking and subsequent jailing of former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim.

During that period the country also experienced the aftermath of a financial crisis which hit the region in 1997, he added.

'No succession problem'

Asked if the grassroots would react strongly to the fact that their party chief has been in power for two decades - and maybe even a few more years ahead - Chia's cryptic reply was: "There have not been any calls for term limits on party posts.

"We are not in a hurry. There is no problem over succession and we do not foresee a leadership crisis coming up."

Gerakan chief Lim, currently the primary industries minister, has been heading the party since 1980.

The last notable leadership crisis in the party was in 1984, where candidates from different factions contested keenly for the party presidency but Lim, who was the incumbent, managed to secure his post for a second term with a tissue-thin majority.

It is learnt that some Gerakan party leaders fear a power struggle to succeed Lim should he step down next year.

Strong contenders for the top post include party Penang chief Koh Tsu Koon and deputy leader Kerk Choo Ting.

In recent months, the Chinese-based DAP and MCA - in the opposition front and the ruling coalition respectively - witnessed unprecedented calls to limit to the tenure of the key party posts, the target being the top-most post.

Chia said such calls for term limits were probably due to perception that the top leaders may have gained excessive power.

This was not to imply that Gerakan was entirely free from problems of abuse of power, he added.

He also said that he personally disagreed with term limits as this practice could be counter-productive, citing the American example of how some presidents had spent most of their first term strategising on how to be re-elected for the second term.

"If a person is good, let him stay in his post. If he is not good, the people can vote him out of office," said Chia.

Political struggle not static

Asked about Gerakan's future in the Barisan Nasional, Chia said that any social and political struggle would not be static.

"Only history will prove which political stand is correct," he said.

"The odds are definitely there but this is mostly due to the history and legacy of the different parties in BN," he added.

The party will hold its national delegates conference in Kuala Lumpur at the end of this month.