Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi could face a vote of no confidence in parliament on Monday.
The prime minister of Malaysia, Abdullah Badawi, has avoided having to face a no-confidence vote in parliament.
It would be the first time in the country's history that such a vote has taken place.
The small Sabah Progressive Party, a member of the ruling coalition, had said it would call the vote.
Supporters of Mr Abdullah have promised to try to fend off the challenge with procedures that favour the government.
But it failed to submit the motion 14 days in advance, a requirement of Malaysian parliamentary rules.
But it is the latest sign of the growing weakness of the prime minister, following a dismal result in the general election earlier this year.
Parliament also passed a non-binding motion supporting the government's decision to raise the cost of fuel.
Embattled leader
The move to end decades of government subsidies means that gasoline prices have risen by 41% and diesel by 63%.
No prime minister has ever had to endure a vote of no confidence in Malaysia's parliament, in fact there is no specific provision for it in the constitution.
People are angry about the fuel price rises, while the ruling coalition is still reeling from heavy losses in March's general election.
Abdullah Badawi could be the first.
The coalition lost its two-thirds majority in parliament for the first time since independence in 1957.
To add insult to injury it is lawmakers from his own side who are questioning his leadership.
Mr Abdullah has been facing mounting pressure to resign, and the no confidence vote would have been the first such motion against a prime minister in Malaysia's history.
The leader of a small party from Sabah, the usually sleepy state on the island of Borneo, stunned the country last week when he called for the vote.
He may have been hoping to trigger similar defections in other parties in the ruling coalition.
That has not happened yet.
But the idea of a no confidence vote has, once again, focused attention on the leadership of Abdullah Badawi - a man whose credibility is already battered.
He resisted calls to resign in the wake of March's general election, when his government suffered an unprecedented fall in support.
But he has been forced to agree a timetable to hand over to his deputy.
All this comes as the government has had to contend with a public angry at the rising costs of food and fuel.
Petrol prices jumped 40% two weeks ago after the government cut the subsidy.
Senior government politicians have said the no confidence vote will never happen.
But if not on Monday, then disillusioned lawmakers may be able to force it in the weeks ahead.
