This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on February 27, 2020

KUALA LUMPUR: Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad yesterday said his decision to resign as prime minister was made on the premise that he could not accept Umno as the dominant party in the new government.

The interim prime minister said the decision was made after his former party, Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu), left the Pakatan Harapan coalition to join hands with Umno and PAS.

“I asked to be given time [to stay as prime minister], but my party Bersatu decided to leave PH (Pakatan Harapan). Some members of other component parties would have left also, causing the collapse of the PH government,” he said in a live televised speech.

“I can accept Umno members who wish to be part of the ruling government by joining other parties, but I cannot accept having Umno in the coalition. This is why I resigned,” he added.

Commenting on allegations that he was plotting to hold on to the position of prime minister due to being “power hungry”, Dr Mahathir said nothing could be further from the truth.

“So, I resigned as I did not see power and position as being the ‘be all and end all’ of my mission. To me, power and position are a ‘means to an end’ or an instrument to achieve an objective and our objective is certainly the welfare of the country.”

On Monday, Bersatu president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin announced that the Malay-based party had quit the Pakatan coalition.

Separately, 11 PKR members of parliament led by deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali left the party and Pakatan en masse to form an independent bloc in the Dewan Rakyat.