JOHOR BARU: The delay of Perikatan Nasional and Pakatan Harapan in naming their candidate for the Johor mentri besar came under question by Barisan Nasional chairman Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (pic).

       Barisan, he said, has been very consistent with its choice of Datuk Seri Hasni Mohammad as its “poster boy” from the early days of the election campaign.

       “If a political party is serious in forming the government, it should reveal who will be its mentri besar.

       “Perikatan and Pakatan have yet to reveal theirs, which is a sign that they know they are not going to win the Johor election,” said Ahmad Zahid, who is also Umno president.

       He added that Hasni, the incumbent Johor Mentri Besar, could make the state attractive again to foreign investors.

       “When Barisan administered the government, Johor was in first place in terms of foreign and domestic investments, but now, the state has fallen to number eight.

       “Since Hasni was appointed Mentri Besar in March 2020, he has made many transformations to fix the damage done by his two predecessors from Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia.

       “They (the Opposition) promised that Johor would be their top priority when they were the government, but there was no trust from foreign investors,” he said in his speech during a meeting with the MIC election machinery in Tampoi here yesterday.

       Ahmad Zahid claimed that many foreign investors in Johor had packed their bags and relocated to other places such as Pahang, “which offers political stability”.

       “Pahang Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail told me that the state received RM18bil worth of investments from Singapore investors after they relocated from Johor.

       “When Barisan becomes the dominant party with a strong mandate in the state once more, we will make sure the government will have stability and get back investor confidence.

       “This will create many opportunities, especially job offers, for everyone, in particular the youth.”