Malaysia's 92-year-old Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad says he will run the country for one to two years before stepping down, and that defeated leader Najib Razak could be charged soon in a massive corruption scandal.

Mahathir, who was premier for 22 years until 2003, left the ruling party he once led to join a four-party coalition that scored a stunning victory in last week's elections. He has agreed to hand over power to jailed reformist leader Anwar Ibrahim but has not previously given any timing.

Mahathir says Anwar will be freed but that he plans to remain prime minister for "one or two years."

Mahathir told a Wall Street Journal conference via a video link on Tuesday that "no deal" will be cut with Najib over the graft scandal.