JOHOR BAHRU, May 17 — Johor Pakatan Harapan (PH) today announced that it will contest in all 56 state constituencies in the upcoming polls, following Barisan Nasional’s (BN) announcement yesterday.

Johor PH chief Aminolhuda Hassan said the decision was made after BN Johor announced that they would contest in all state seats on their own.

He said Johor PH will not back down on this decision and dismissed any cooperation with BN for the state polls.

“Johor BN lost in the 2018 election and it is possible that this can happen again in the upcoming state election,” he said when speaking at the 2026 PH Convention held at the Persada Johor International Convention Centre here today.

Yesterday, Johor BN confirmed it would contest all 56 seats in the coming state election, effectively ruling out any electoral cooperation with PH Perikatan Nasional (PN) or even Muda.

Johor BN chief and state menteri besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi was reported saying that the decision was made after taking into account the views of Johoreans as well as the grassroots leadership of Umno and the state BN.

Aminolhuda, who is Johor Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) chief, also criticised the recent appointment of five non-elected state assemblymen, saying it was for BN to remain in power.

He claimed that Johor BN was afraid of losing the people’s support, especially in the urban areas of the state.

“There are seven state constituencies in Johor with more than 100,000 voters where the state government should have carried out an electoral redelineation.

“If the redelineation is done, the urban areas will immediately see an increase of voters who are largely in favour of PH,” he said.

Aminolhuda pointed out that Johor is still a state strongly influenced by PH as the coalition has secured 14 parliamentary seats out of 26 in the state.

On May 7, the Johor state legislative assembly approved a constitutional amendment Bill on the appointment of five non-elected assemblymen.

The Bill had received a two-thirds vote involving 40 out of 56 assemblymen, all of whom are from the government bloc.

 

JOHOR BAHRU, May 16 — Johor Barisan Nasional (BN) today confirmed it will contest all 56 seats in the next state election, effectively ruling out any electoral cooperation with Pakatan Harapan (PH), Perikatan Nasional (PN) or Muda.

Johor BN chairman Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi said the decision was made after discussions with the coalition’s component party leadership.

“With a sense of conviction and responsibility, Johor BN will contest in all 56 state constituencies in the upcoming state election.

“For Umno and Johor BN, the decision to contest in all 56 state seats is a clear offer to the people that we are prepared to continue to form a stable, strong government.

“The decision will fully serve the state’s development and the well-being of Johoreans,” he said in a statement today.

Onn Hafiz, who is also the Johor menteri besar and state Umno chief, said the coalition had taken into account the views and expectations of Johoreans as well as feedback from Umno and BN grassroots leaders.

The announcement appears to end speculation over possible seat-sharing arrangements or political cooperation between Johor BN and other coalitions ahead of the state polls.

In the 2022 Johor election, BN won 40 of the 56 state seats, dominated by Umno victories.

PH secured 12 seats, of which 10 were won by DAP and one each by PKR and Amanah.

PN won three seats through Bersatu and PAS, while Muda captured one seat.

 

KUALA LUMPUR: Khairy Jamaluddin, a former minister in various cabinets, is seen as a popular figure among young Malaysians, particularly among the Malays, and he did not hide his ambitions to become the country’s youngest Prime Minister.

However, with the defeat of his party, Umno and the Barisan Nasional (BN) in the 2018 elections, his dream of becoming PM at a tender age was destroyed.

At 50 now, he can’t become the youngest PM because, historically speaking, the youngest PM was Tun Abdul Razak Hussein, the father of fallen PM Najib Razak. Abdul Razak was 48 when he became PM.

Recently, Khairy raised the issue of becoming Prime Minister again. This time, in an interview with Malay Mail, the former health minister said becoming prime minister remains a “lifetime ambition. However, he added that he no longer sees himself as a failure if it never happens.

“It has been a lifetime ambition for me to be in a position of leadership in politics, and being the prime minister is the best position, simply because you can do the most and help the most. 

“I always felt that I would not be a success in life if I didn’t become the prime minister,” Khairy said. 

“Now, I feel that it is okay if I don’t become the prime minister. 

“I will not see myself as a failure, and I will still be enough as a person,” he added. 

While 2018 will remain a great defeat for BN and Umno, the last general elections turned out to be a personal stinging defeat for Khairy. He lost to a virtually unknown PKR candidate.

Following this defeat, Khairy was expelled from Umno in January 2023 over alleged breaches of party discipline, including criticising the party leadership and not aligning with its official campaign direction. 

He returned to the party after its leader, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who is a deputy Prime Minister, called on members expelled or suspended and those who left the party after its double defeats in the general elections to return to their former abode.

But since 2023, Khairy has been active as a radio presenter, joining Hot FM and launching a very successful podcast, Keluar Sekejap, with a former Umno information chief, Shahril Hamdan, and taking on several brand endorsements.

He told Malay Mail the last three years were “commercially successful”, adding that he also spent more quality time with family and friends and led a less stressful life than when he was managing the Covid-19 pandemic as the health minister.

But he did not forget his dream, saying that he will take the opportunity if it knocks.

“If the opportunity knocks and if the rakyat will have me, it is still my lifetime ambition, but it is not everything.

“I’m not here anymore to go quickly to the job,” he said. 

If he does become Malaysia’s prime minister, Khairy said he wants to lead Malaysia to fulfil its true potential, even if that means taking political risks.

“In my view, Malaysia is a slightly under-performing student for reasons of its own making.

“If it gets over itself, there is nothing that can stop this country apart from physical limitations.

“We have to risk some political capital to re-punch our weight, which we are not doing now, but it can be done,” he said. 

This article (Ex-minister is back to revive dream of becoming Malaysia’s PM) first appeared on The Independent Singapore News.

MALAYSIA: Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s government is facing more challenges lately, particularly after the chaos created in Negeri Sembilan, a small state near Kuala Lumpur, where members of his Malay ally, United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), left the state government led by his coalition.

Following the chaos, former Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin, who was a powerful youth chief in UMNO, the party allied to Anwar in the unity government, has rebuked supporters of the PKR (Anwar’s party) who condemned the political chaos in Negeri Sembilan.

The PKR elements attacked UMNO, saying they are following the path of the Perikatan Nasional (PN) that toppled the Pakatan Harapan government, then headed by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, in 2020. The PN was then labelled ‘roof digging’ or backdoor government by PKR and Pakatan.

In a series of Instagram stories, Khairy, who is now a former MP, challenged those accusing UMNO of backdoor politics to compare it with Anwar Ibrahim’s move, when he was the opposition leader in 2008.

At that time, PKR and Anwar found it legal and logical to attempt to bring down the Barisan Nasional (BN) government under Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. Tun Abdullah is the father-in-law of Khairy.

“Many shallow-minded people in PH (Team X and Team B) attack UMNO for being opportunistic and spreading backdoor politics/tebuk atap by exploiting crises to launch a power grab.

“I suggest everyone (especially the younger generation) look up what was planned to happen on September 16, 2008, to know who started tebuk atap politics in Malaysia,” he said.

After he was set free by Abdullah Badawi in 2004, Anwar returned to Parliament via a by-election victory in August 2008.

Later on, Anwar announced that Sept 16 was the deadline for him to form a new federal government. He promised voters he would seize BN’s majority by persuading its MPs to defect to the then Pakatan Rakyat coalition, Malaysiakini reported.

Like in 2021, Anwar had then claimed he had secured sufficient support with over 31 Barisan Nasional (BN) MPs backing him to topple Khairy’s father-in-law. But this attempt failed.

Khairy also noted that when Anwar tried to topple the federal government in 2008, the world was already facing one of the worst economic crises, marked by severe financial instability and global liquidity problems.

To conclude his attacks on PKR and Pakatan, Khairy added that Anwar’s party should be brave enough to face a vote in the state assembly in Negeri Sembilan to let the majority decide who will rule the state or to find out if the current PKR Chief Minister still has a majority.

Fourteen UMNO assemblymen decided to pull the plug on the Pakatan-led government in the state, but the ruler of the state has said the Chief Minister, Aminuddin Harun, will remain in post. Anwar has also declared there is no need for fresh polls in the state.

This article (Ex-minister opens old wounds between UMNO and Pakatan in fresh split) first appeared on The Independent Singapore News.