The current state of politicking and discontent about the economy meant there was a groundswell against the ruling bloc that could see it lose power if a snap poll were held today, he said.

Rafizi said the succession issue would ultimately be settled by the Pakatan Harapan Presidential Council, a top body in the bloc comprising the four constituent parties’ leaders.

With no fixed date for the handover, the succession issue has been the number one topic of discussion within the country’s political circles since the Pakatan Harapan coalition came to power in May 2018.

The coalition agreed to make Mahathir its prime ministerial candidate, on the condition that Anwar would succeed him. The two men are former arch rivals, but buried the hatchet in their bid to topple the former prime minister Najib Razak.

Following the election Anwar was granted a royal pardon for a sodomy conviction he says was politically motivated.

Speaking at the ISEAS - Yusof Ishak Institute’s annual Regional Outlook Forum, Rafizi said he was among the drafters of the original succession agreement signed on January 7, 2018, four months before the watershed elections which swept Pakatan Harapan to power. Rafizi, who has stepped back from frontline politics following the polls, said the agreement did not include a handover date as has been speculated by observers.

Malaysian PM Mahathir says he’ll ‘hand baton’ to Anwar after Apec 2020

Instead, he said it was Mahathir who repeatedly alluded to a so-called “two-year timeline” that led many to think the 94-year-old would hand over the reins by May this year.

Mahathir has since said he is committed to honouring the succession agreement but will only step down after the final leaders’ meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) forum the country is hosting in November. Stepping down before that would unsettle the government at a time when it is hosting a high-key global event, the leader has argued.

Rafizi, a vice-president of Anwar’s Parti Keadilan Rakyat, said he did not believe there would be any “bold attempt” by any party to force a succession in 2020 given politicians’ instinct not to rock the boat.

The politician said despite the belief in certain circles that Anwar’s status as the prime minister-in-waiting was not set in stone, the veteran politician was likely to see off such a challenge because he had the support of a vast majority of his own party as well as the Democratic Action Party (DAP).

The two parties together control 92 of 222 parliamentary seats. That figure is 20 seats short of the support of 112 MPs Anwar needs to lead a simple majority government.

The other two parties in the coalition include Mahathir’s Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia and Amanah, a small Islamist party.

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There has been some speculation that if Mahathir refused to step down Anwar would force a vote of no confidence, but Rafizi said this was unlikely. Support for the coalition would “collapse” if there were an effort from within it to forcefully remove Mahathir in such a manner, he said.

A former MP, Rafizi said whether Anwar triumphed at the next election – if he is prime minister by then – would be determined by his choice of economic advisers.

The former finance minister would need to enact radical economic policies that were likely to be met with resistance from within his party and the coalition, Rafizi said.