JOHOR BARU: Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin will not be contesting a seat in the Johor state election.

       The former mentri besar said he made the decision without any hesitation.

       “It is better to give young leaders of calibre the opportunity to contest.

       “We must work hard so that Barisan Nasional can return to lead Johor once more,” he said here on Monday (Jan 24).

       Mohamed Khaled, who is also the Pasir Gudang Umno division chief, said caretaker mentri besar Datuk Hasni Mohammad had done a good job running the state since February 2020.

       “This is my decision (not to contest) even though some quarters claimed I will be contesting, which is not true at all,” he added.

       In the 14th general election (GE14) in 2018, Mohamed Khaled was in a four-cornered fight for the Permas state seat.

       He lost to Datuk Che Zakaria Mohd Salleh of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia, who won with a majority of 8,746 votes.