Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi today turned down the suggestion to have the Penang chief minister post rotated among Barisan Nasional (BN) component parties.

According to a Bernama report filed from Tokyo, he said the government would maintain the status quo and implement whatever had been discussed and agreed upon.

"We'll continue with this practice. The important thing is to forge cooperation and consensus within the BN. That's the BN's principle of power-sharing through consensus," he said.

The premier was asked to comment on a suggestion by the Bukit Mertajam Umno division chief Musa Sheikh Fadzir last Sunday that the Penang chief minister post be rotated similarly to what was practiced in Sabah.

Abdullah, who is on a three-day official visit to Japan, also said that a chief minister or menteri besar is appointed not to serve certain races but to represent the BN government which is responsible for the development and well-being of all the people in the country.

"Whoever becomes a chief minister or menteri besar will understand that he is a BN chief minister or menteri besar responsible for the people of all races.

"It doesn't mean that when a Malay becomes chief minister what's good will go to the Malays and what's bad, to the other races," added the Umno president and BN chairperson.

The current Penang chief minister is Dr Koh Tsu Koon who is the vice-president of the Chinese-predominated Gerakan party. The party has been controlling the state since the nation's third general elections in 1969.

Gerakan, a former opposition party, joined the ruling coalition in 1972.

War on graft

Meanwhile, Abdullah was also asked comment on former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad's claim that the corruption culture, including in political parties, was getting serious.

The premier said the government would not compromise in the fight against corruption.

"We will continue with our fight to reduce and eradicate corruption. There's no compromise," he added.

He said the government would investigate and act against those who commit corruption but prevention was even more important.

"This (prevention) is done through various programmes. I hope that our efforts to combat corruption will be fruitful," he added.