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| Southeast Asia |
| MŽsia opposition member quits |
| 2009-04-17 |
| [Straits Times] A SENIOR member of Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim's party resigned on Thursday following an investigation into alleged corruption. Mohamad Fairus Khairuddin, who was the deputy chief minister in the northern Penang state and a member of the state parliament, announced his resignation in a statement, saying his move will 'allow me the space to clear my name'. Anti-corruption authorities have investigated him for allegedly collaborating in a cover-up with illegal quarry operators, according to Malaysian media reports. The resignation would pave the way for a by-election under Malaysia's election laws, which will be the sixth since the general election a year ago in which the opposition gained unprecedented ground. 'The seat is now vacant and the Election Commission will decide the date to conduct the by-election which has to be called within 60 days,' Azmin Ali, vice-president of Mr Anwar's Keadilan party, told AFP. New Prime Minister Najib Razak has already taken a knock from voters in by-elections on April 7. He lost two of the three votes, which the opposition said showed voters rejected the new premier. |
| Posted by:Fred |