PM Najib cancels family holiday 'to be with rakyat'

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, who returned today from working visits to three countries, said he had cancelled a holiday with the family abroad to spend more time with the people in Malaysia.

He said he was thankful to his wife Rosmah Mansor and their children for having agreed with him to come back earlier from overseas.

"I told my family I felt that I should return to Malaysia and that I was prepared to forgo the holiday for the sake of Malaysians back home," he said when addressing about 3,000 people who had gathered at the Bunga Raya Complex of the KL international airport to greet him on his return.

Najib had been abroad on official visits to Turkmenistan, the United Kingdom and Italy.

The prime minister was to spend a week in Italy with his family.

Today, he is scheduled to go on a walkabout in Subang Perdana, attend Friday prayers at the Subang Perdana mosque and have lunch with the people at Sekolah Kebangsaan Jalan U3, Subang Perdana.

Need to go down to the ground

Najib said he informed Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin that it was important that both of them and the other ministers as well to go down to the ground to meet the people.

"We have to meet the people. We have to tell them that they can depend on the BN government, that the BN is their best choice," he said.

Najib is scheduled to visit Perlis tomorrow.

Muhyiddin and Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein were at the airport to greet Najib.

Najib was greeted with a banner carrying the signatures of about 1.2 million Malaysians expressing their support for his leadership as the prime minister.

The signature campaign was initiated by the Malaysian Indian Muslim Congress, an associate member of Umno.

- Bernama