New York  - Frederick "Fritz" Henderson, second in command at beleaguered General Motors, is the likely candidate to take over the firm amidst reports that GM head Rick Wagoner has been asked to leave by the US government, media reports said Sunday.

Henderson, 50, the chief-operating-officer, is the likely replacement, at least on a temporary basis, The New York Times reported, citing people close to the situation. Henderson met with members of the government panel overseeing the car industry bailout.

Wagoner, 56, who has headed GM since mid 2000, will resign as head of General Motors Corp under an agreement with the government to continue bailing out the struggling carmaker, the Detroit Free Press reported Sunday.

Wagoner's decision comes ahead of a major announcement Monday by President Barack Obama on the future of the US car industry, which has seen sales plummet more than 35 per cent amid the country's worst recession in decades.

Obama is expected to lay out the terms for continued government support of GM and Chrysler LLC. GM has already received 13.5 billion dollars and Chrysler 4 billion dollars in emergency loans. (dpa)