Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim's bid to seize power will fail, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said today, promising to thwart any attempts to topple his government.

Anwar, a former deputy premier and finance minister who was sacked and jailed a decade ago, has vowed to oust the ruling coalition by mid-September with the help of defecting lawmakers.

abdullah ahmad badawi pak lah pc 050908 04 Abdullah said Anwar's three-member Pakatan Rakyat opposition alliance was banking on members of the ruling party defecting but insisted that would not happen, according to the state Bernama news agency.

"We will not give them the opportunity to set up government on September 16," Abullah said.

Pakatan Rakyat gained unprecedented ground against the Barisan Nasional coalition in the March general election, securing a third of parliamentary seats and five states.

To seize power, Anwar needs 30 defectors.

Abdullah is facing calls from within his ruling party to quit as his popularity plummets due to a steep rise in inflation and allegations of economic mismanagement.

2008 election results for sabah and sarawak 120508 He has promised to quit in mid-2010 and hand over to his deputy Najib Razak.

Rumours untrue

Meanwhile, rumours spread through SMS (short messaging service) that seven component BN component parties would be leaving the ruling coalition today turned out to be false.

The SMSes said that Gerakan, Progressive People's Party (PPP), Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP), Sabah Progressive Party (Sapp), United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organisation (Upko), LDP (Liberal Democratic Party) and Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) would be hold "simultaneous" press conference at 3pm today.

Also reports that Sapp's deputy president Raymond Tan has been sacked by the party also turned out to be untrue.

Tan, who is Sabah deputy chief minister, is said to be unhappy with the party's decision to back a no-confidence motion against the prime minister.