Malaysian premier quits after poll setback

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi submitted his resignation to the king, who is scheduled to swear in the Deputy Prime Minister, Najib Razak, as leader today. But the carefully planned transition hit a snag when all 81 opposition MPs sent a petition asking the king to delay the swearing-in until Mr Najib has been cleared of allegations of corruption and links to a murder case.

Mr Abdullah, 69, was pressured to step down after the ruling National Front coalition suffered its worst results ever in the March 2008 general elections. Critics in the coalition blamed the setback on Mr Abdullah's efforts to provide greater freedom of speech and to allow criticism of the government. He was debilitated by constant attacks from his semi-authoritarian predecessor Mahathir Mohamad, who accused him of nepotism and inefficiency.