Najib Abdul Razak may have defiantly declared he will not resign as prime minister, but this is reminiscent of several prime ministers who did the same before falling out of power, said veteran newsman A Kadir Jasin.

 

"All leaders in Najib’s position said the same thing. When I was covering Abdul Rahman Putra in the final days of his rule in 1969, he said the same thing, but not arrogantly.

 

"Then, the Tunku was being surreptitiously undermined by his deputy Abdul Razak Hussein, with the help of  Umno young turks like Mahathir Mohamad and Abdullah Abdul Rahman.

 

"Abdullah Ahmad Badawi ( photo ) said the same thing when he was being hounded by Dr Mahathir and Muhyiddin Mohd Yassin in 2008 and 2009. He eventually gave up and Najib sailed in," said Kadir in a blog posting today.

 

However, Kadir said Abdul Rahman at least did not "waste time and money" organising "love the PM" gatherings.

 

Kadir was responding to Najib's nationwide blitz to shore up support in the face of calls to him to step down over his handling of 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) which has amassed a staggering RM42 billion debt.

 

Najib, in a rally in Pahang yesterday, where more than 10,000 people turned up, declared that he would not resign just because of one person demanding for him to do so.

 

The prime minister did not name names but it was apparent he was referring to former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad who has become Najib's fiercest critic.

 

However, Kadir ( photo ), who is a former New Straits Times Group editor-in-chief and Mahathir's stalwart, said that it is clear the former prime minister isn't the only one who wants Najib out.

 

"Since the prime minister would not quit 'just because one person wants him to do so, let me now officially join that one person in declaring that I too want Najib to step down," he said.

 

Kadir also warned that Najib's apparent show of force among supporters may not last.

 

"It is a temporary state. Here today gone tomorrow," he said.