"No, I will not go beyond three years."

This was the statement made by Malaysia's Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad on June 22, in response to a question on how long he would hold on to power to achieve the goal of reducing Malaysia's debt, The Star reported.

Sticking to his promise of handing over power to Anwar

Mahathir's statement had been given as part of an interview in Bangkok, Thailand, while attending the 34th ASEAN summit.

He added that he would stick to his promise of stepping down and handing over the position to prime-minister-in-waiting Anwar Ibrahim.

As per Mahathir:

"As far as I’m concerned, I have made a promise that I will step down and that Anwar will succeed me."

Previously said two years in 2018

This reflects a change from the timetable that Mahathir had previously laid out in September 2018.

At that time, Mahathir stated that he would honour an agreement by the four parties that made up the ruling Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition, to step down after two years in favour of Anwar, The Straits Times (ST) reported.

Mahathir had also vouched for Anwar, stating that he was confident of Anwar's experience and maturity.

Current priority is to resolve Malaysia's debt

However, Mahathir has since stressed that his priority is to resolve Malaysia' debt problem, even after he steps down, The Star further reported.

He added that the Malaysian government requires three years to reduce the country's debt from 80 per cent of its gross domestic product to 54 per cent.

Member of Mahathir's party disputes handover

Separately, Malaysiakini reported that a member of Mahathir's party, Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu), Rais Yatim, had insisted that there was no "black and white" agreement for Anwar to succeed Mahathir.

He has since been rebutted by a statement from Anwar's party, Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), which stated that the PKR was satisfied with the transition plan, as set out in the PH consensus document, and agreed upon by all key leaders of the coalition in January 2018.

The statement also added, "Mahathir and the Pakatan Harapan presidential council have also stood by this arrangement."

However, the document did not specify a timeline for the handover.

Anwar says Mahathir must be given space

As for Anwar, The Star quoted Anwar as stating in February 2019 that he expected to be Prime Minister within two years.

However, Anwar added that Mahathir also had to be given space to govern Malaysia during these "very difficult and trying times."

Top image collage from Mahathir Mohamad Facebook and Anwar Ibrahim Facebook