KUALA LUMPUR, March 14 — PKR leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said today that it is not yet his time to be prime minister of Malaysia.

In an exclusive interview with Mingguan Malaysia, he denied he had failed in his bid to be prime minister and is still confident that he will one day be the leader of the country.

The Port Dickson MP, however, added that there are a few who are uncomfortable with the thought of him being prime minister, especially those among the rich elite he called "billion dollar figures.”

"I haven’t failed to be prime minister, it just hasn’t happened yet. I have to accept the fact that I am still the Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) chosen candidate to be prime minister and if Malaysians support me for the post, I will continue to protect the people, especially those who need it the most, God-willing.

"I know those with billions of ringgit do not really agree with me. They are afraid of me. I think that the people are more understanding and are more comfortable with me as prime minister,” he said.

When asked about the age factor — Anwar will be 74 this year — and if he does not become prime minister after the 15th general election, Anwar said he has thought long and hard about this and conceded that he would leave it to the younger generation to take over if he is not successful.

"I don’t want to be 95 and still be pursuing the prime minister role,” he joked.