Malaysian Prime Minister Ahmad Abdullah Badawi has ridden out the immediate popular anger over a steep rise in fuel prices but his survival will remain in jeopardy as a resurgent opposition presses home its advantage. Abdullah faces multiple threats. The opposition plans to topple his coalition in September through defections, while pressure is building within his ranks to quit and appoint his anointed heir to restore confidence in the Barisan Nasional coalition that has ruled for five decades. Protests against the fuel hike have been small and scattered so far, but if the opposition carries through its plan to bring a 100,000 people into the city centre next month the pressure on Abdullah will increase dramatically, analysts said. The protests would be the largest in a country with tight restrictions on public gatherings and might well be the tipping point as inflation stoked by the fuel price hike hits a 10-year high of 4.2 percent. Petrol rose 41 percent and diesel 63 percent. “The pressure on him will increase enormously,” said Rita Sim, deputy head of a think-tank linked to the Malaysian Chinese Association, a member of the ruling coalition. “He's made an unpopular decision which in the long-term is good for the country. But in the short-term, this may mean his political life is going to shorten,” she said. Opposition figurehead Anwar Ibrahim says he has the numbers to topple the ruling coalition, which has ruled the country since independence from Britain in 1957, but is waiting for the right moment. “We have seen clearly more interest and support for Pakatan Rakyat (opposition alliance). This applies even to members of parliament. Even some of them have been encouraged to approach me directly even though they are being closely monitored,” he told a news conference over the weekend. Anwar plans a no-confidence vote against the government in September, hoping popular anger over the new fuel prices, which are expected to be followed with higher electricity rates in August, will boil over. Abdul Ghapur Salleh, a ruling party lawmaker from the politically key state of Sabah, said it was difficult to explain to his constituents the reason behind the increases. “They are not convinced by the government's argument when we are an oil-producing country,” the Star newspaper quoted him as saying. Since raising fuel prices, Abdullah has announced new development funds for these big oil-producing states to soften the blow. “But the short-term risk remains, especially from the political aspect. Badawi's leadership position has certainly been undermined with these recent changes in policy,” said Irvin Seah, economist at DBS Bank in Singapore. Prior to the price increases, Abdullah's approval rating stood at a low of 48 percent
