SINGAPORE, March 3 (UPI) -- Malaysia's prime minister Wednesday dissolved parliament as of Thursday, paving the way for general elections within 60 days.
Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi released the statement through the national Bernama News Agency. No date for the elections was given, but they are expected March 20-21, the BBC reported.
The polls will be Badawi's first electoral test since he assumed power last October, when former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad retired after 22 years in the post.
The elections are seen as an endorsement of the government's efforts to grow the economy, improve government services, develop rural areas and end corruption.
They are also viewed as an effort to impede the work of the main opposition, a fundamentalist Muslim party that seeks to impose Islamic law. Malaysia's population of 25 million is predominantly Muslim, but the government is a secular coalition that has remained in power for 47 years.
In the last elections in 1999, the coalition government suffered a setback after the arrest and jailing of Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. The ruling party is expected to win a majority of the 219 parliamentary seats at stake.
