Najib says it again: I stand by PM

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak today firmly stood behind his boss Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, saying that he would support the premier in restoring people’s trust and confidence in the government.

In reiterating his support to Abdullah as the leader of the government and Umno despite pressure on the prime minister to step down, Najib said Abdullah still commanded the support and respect of the cabinet and Umno members for his leadership.

"The prime minister has expressed his intention to continue leading the nation as he still enjoys the support and respect in the cabinet and among party members,” Najib was quoted as saying by Bernama today.

"He (Abdullah) has decided to continue with his leadership and has the right to do so," he said.

Najib said that he would play his role as Abdullah’s deputy in both the government and party to reinvent Umno and restore the people's trust and confidence in the government.

"We'll work together as a team in the cabinet and in Umno. This will be our primary task to be focused on," he added.

BN's heavy loss

He also said that demands for the prime minister to step down were merely the views of certain quarters.

The calls asking for Abdullah’s resignation has been getting louder by the day to the extent that the premier had to reiterate his stand yesterday that he would not run away from his responsibilities as the prime minister.

His detractors, including his predecessor Dr Mahathir Mohamad, are calling for him to resign to assume responsibility for the Barisan Nasional's poor showing in last month's general election.

The BN lost its long-held two-thirds majority in Parliament after winning only 140 of the 222 parliamentary seats while the opposition captured 82 seats. It also lost control of Abdullah’s home state of Penang, Perak, Selangor and Kedah besides failing to regain Kelantan from PAS.

Abdullah is also expected to face challenge from former Umno vice president Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah for the party presidency post in the December party polls.

Muhyiddin: Stop the speculation

In a related matter, Umno vice-president Muhyiddin Yassin also urged all parties to stop speculating on Abdullah’s future as the party leader.

He said such speculations would not bring any benefit to the people and country.

The International Trade and Industry Minister also said that any speculation on the nation's leadership would have a negative impact on investment inflow.

“In the interest of the country, we don't want such a speculation, what more when it involves the position of the country's top leader.

"In any country, political uncertainty due to speculations such as this is not beneficial but indeed a loss as it causes fear and worry. This is what we want to avoid," he was quoted as saying by Bernama.