Sept. 16 (Bloomberg) — Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim said he has the support of enough lawmakers to form the government and has written to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to discuss a “peaceful transition” of power.

“We have the numbers and we are ready,” Anwar told about 10,000 supporters at a rally late last night outside Kuala Lumpur. His three-party People’s Alliance is 30 seats short of a majority in the 222-member parliament.

Abdullah, whose ruling coalition lost a record number of parliamentary seats and its two-thirds majority in March elections, has rejected Anwar’s claims of being able to take power by today. Political tensions have risen in the past week, with police detaining an opposition lawmaker, an anti-government blogger and a journalist under security laws allowing detention without trial.

Last night’s rally was called to protest the detentions, and Anwar, 61, pledged that he would scrap the security law. Today’s date is the same day in 1963 when the Federation of Malaysia was formed and Anwar’s alliance has also pledged to end racial preferences in the multiethnic country that currently make ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities pay more for homes, gain better grades to enter university and compete for jobs after Malay allocations have been filled.

Malaysian Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar has said the arrests were in the interests of public order and safety. Abdullah, 68, hasn’t made a public comment on the matter.

The arrests led to the reported resignation of Malaysia’s minister responsible for legal reform, and protests from Gerakan and the Malaysian Chinese Association, two Chinese-based parties in the ruling coalition.

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