Embattled Umno president Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has just nine more days to decide whether he will resign or defend his post in the postponed party polls next March.

Last Friday, a special meeting made the decision to move the party polls from December ot “facilitate an early transition” by Abdullah to his deputy Najib Abdul Razak.

abdullah ahmad badawi and najib Abdullah has remained non-committal as to whether he will defend his party post, and would only say that he will reveal his plan before the Umno divisional meetings start at Oct 9.

The premier was compelled to bring forward his original June 2010 transition deadline after reportedly coming under heavy pressure to quit early.

Abdullah or his staunch supporters will not be the only losers should he decide to resign in March.

Malaysiakini spoke to analysts and political watchers to find out others who will have much to lose when Abdullah steps down.

Topping their list was none other than Abdullah’s famous son-in-law, Umno rising star and Rembau MP Khairy Jamaluddin, who has been consistently attacked as the power behind the throne - a charge that he has vehemently denied.

Ong Kian Ming, political analyst

Khairy Jamaluddin, Umno Youth deputy chief

khairy jamaluddin The biggest political loser as a result of Abdullah stepping down early will be Khairy (left). I suspect that he will probably lose his bid for Umno Youth head because he will no longer have the same kind of access to the PM’s office and the powers of patronage that come along with it.

Anwar Ibrahim, opposition leader

anwar ibrahim If Najib steps in as PM, he will take away some uncertainty with regard to BN’s future leadership. This may convince some of the Sarawak and Sabah MPs on Anwar’s (left) list of possible defectors to stay on in BN. Also, Najib can claim a fresh mandate to unite the BN as well as Umno.

najib tun razak 040808 Gerakan might feel that it should give the BN a second chance with Najib (right) at the helm instead of considering leaving.

Cynthia Gabriel, human rights watchdog Suaram director and Petaling Jaya city councillor

Malaysians

If any Umno leader replaces Abdullah, the same policies that are based on race and ethnicity will continue. The same administration that condones the use of draconian laws like the Internal Security Act or Sedition Act will continue.

The efforts for reform will be compromised and this will be a real setback for the pace of reforms, so the losers will be Malaysians at large.

Ramon Navaratnam, Transparency International Malaysia president

Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, prime minister

Don’t forget he was elected with a huge mandate. It’s sad to think that Umno doesn’t think he is fit to carry on (in the job). Abdullah might have lost some (of BN’s) seats to the opposition in the March 8 general election but that probably is not his fault alone.

Reform of the judiciary and the Anti-Corruption Agency was slow (in coming) with the huge mandate that he has had; he however doesn’t seem to know how to make use of it.

Khoo Kay Peng, political analyst

Muhyiddin Yassin, Umno vice-president

muhyiddin yasin muhyiddin yassin Muhyiddin (left) is seen as more senior in terms of his political experience than Najib among some of the Umno delegates.

Since Najib is plagued with problems like his alleged involvement in the Altantuya case or allegedly behind Saiful Bukhari Azlan’s (sodomy) case, Muhyiddin is seen as a leader who is more capable to lead Umno than Najib.

This is why Najib has to go through a party contest to be No 1. If he wins, then he will have more legitimacy to lead the party.

Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, Umno stalwart and aspiring presidential candidate

tengku razaleigh His case is quite clear. Razaleigh (left) is making his bid for the presidency based on the argument that Abdullah is not a suitable leader. With the transition already happening, it will mean (that the departure of) Abdullah is already a foregone conclusion.

If Abdullah is gone, then Razaleigh is gone also.