Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad of Malaysia, a man who has been a bitter critic of the West but whose tight hold over this Muslim country made him a new ally against Islamic militants, announced Tuesday that he would be stepping down after 21 years in power.
Though his popularity at home and his reputation abroad have rarely been higher, Mahathir, 76, said through a spokesman that he would leave office on Oct. 25, 2003.
“The decision is final,” Khalil Yaakob, the information minister, said here in a nationally televised news conference.
Tuesday’s announcement ends a drama that began Saturday, when Mahathir concluded a two-hour speech at a party conference by announcing that he was resigning. It seemed to catch this country of 21 million by surprise, including his closest political associates, foreign diplomats, and even his wife, who seemed to gasp when she heard his words.
Pandemonium erupted in the hall, amid a chorus of anguished cries of disbelief from party loyalists. In a closed-door meeting, leaders of the party, the United Malays National Organization, pleaded with him to retract his statement, which he did.
But Mahathir, who has a well-earned reputation for speaking his own mind, a quality that brought him into frequent conflict with Washington, remained determined. During a Sunday morning meeting at the prime minister’s residence, party officials and Cabinet ministers managed to persuade him only to adopt a prolonged transition period.
Then the man who has taken care of everything in Malaysia for 21 years went on vacation in Italy.
His deputies announced on Tuesday that Mahathir had named Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to succeed him. Badawi, 62, has been in politics most of his adult life, generating little excitement.
He became deputy four years ago, after the man who was the front-runner to succeed Mahathir at the time, Anwar Ibrahim, made a move for power and was stopped by Mahathir. After forcing him from office, Mahathir had Ibrahim convicted on what are widely considered trumped-up charges of corruption and sodomy.
Abdullah said Tuesday that Mahathir had decided to step down simply because he feels he has served long enough.
Malaysian and foreign observers found that hard to believe.
“It’s a bit puzzling,” said a Western ambassador.
Mahathir has been a constant irritant to the White House, entertaining Fidel Castro as recently as last year, and calling for an end to sanctions against Iraq. But under his control, Malaysia has been one of the most stable countries in Asia. There have been no coups, nor bloodbaths among ethnic Malays, Chinese and Indians.
