KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim has repeated that if he and his party fail to take control of the government from Prime Minister Najib Razak in the upcoming general election, he will retire from political life, ending 30 years of service. The former deputy prime minister of the Barisan Nasional (National Front) party government that has ruled Malaysia for the past 55 years since independence, has become the face of the opposition against the BN in recent years. The government must call new elections by June and experts believe the vote will be one of the closest in the country's history. In 2008, the ruling party had its poorest showing at the polls, and many believe the upcoming vote could propel the opposition into power. “I will try my best. I am confident we will win. But if not, I will step down,” Ibrahim said Friday night when taking part in a Google Hangout that was streamed live on YouTube. Ibrahim, who has taught at Oxford and Washington's Georgetown University, said he would return to academic life if he lost. “If we don't get the mandate, then we should give space for the second-liners in leadership,” he said during the one-hour question-and-answer event which has previously featured US President Barack Obama. In recent months, the opposition leader has been facing ongoing controversy and court cases against him, including ones pertaining to a decades-old corruption charge that had previously been dropped against him, highlighting the campaign of attacks against him and his party.
