Overnight ad blitz as Najib visits Johor to boost BN’s campaign

Workers toil late into the night to put up the billboards with a smiling picture of Abdul Ghani. — Picture by Saw Siow FengSKUDAI, April 29 — Advertisements displaying the Barisan Nasional (BN) administration’s achievements through Iskandar Malaysia sprouted overnight as caretaker Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak arrived here today to boost the coalition’s campaign in the state.

The BN has been under attack in its southern stronghold, with the DAP’s veteran leader Lim Kit Siang leading the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) charge in the Gelang Patah federal seat.

Workers were still hard at work in Skudai past midnight putting up a billboard with an advertisement bearing the picture of four-term Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman — the man that BN has sent to defend its Gelang Patah seat.

“From morning until night,” 28-year-old billboard worker Shutiyorno told The Malaysian Insider last night, saying that the team had on the same day also set up similar billboards in two other locations — Gelang Patah and the Iskandar region.

The three billboards in the Skudai area are just a few minutes’ drive from the open space near Sutera Mall — the venue of a massive Pakatan Rakyat (PR) ceramah after Nomination Day on April 20 that drew thousands of people and generated funds of over RM90,000.

The billboards, in Bahasa Malaysia and Chinese, are emblazoned with the words “Iskandar Malaysia” and the 1 Malaysia logo.

They carry the phrases “Faedah untuk Rakyat” (Benefits for the people) and “Pembangunan Seimbang — Pekerjaan untuk Semua” (Balanced development — Jobs for all).

The billboards proudly display a list of achievements including the creation of 554,000 jobs since 2006, the creation of 54,184 new jobs in the first six months of 2012, with the statement that 154,000 jobs come from the manufacturing and services industry.

A bespectacled and smiling Abdul Ghani in a suit and tie dominates the right corner of the billboards that also said that 7,000 locals have been trained for catalyst projects and that 286,000 new jobs will be created by 2025.

“The government’s investment of RM8.3 billion successfully attracted investments from the private sector worth RM103 billion,” the billboards remind road-users, referring to the Iskandar Malaysia, which was established during Abdul Ghani’s term as the state’s mentri besar.

The Iskandar region, which has already brought in investments worth over RM100 billion since it came into the picture in 2006, is touted as one of the country’s success stories.

The southern economic corridor is seen as a key driver of Johor’s economy but has also been blamed for pushing up the cost of living in the state lying north of Singapore.

As BN battles against the fierce onslaught of PR in Johor, BN chairman Najib is expected to greet Pontian locals in the morning before going off to Johor Baru this afternoon, finishing his tour with a session at night at Kolej Universiti Selatan, Skudai.

BN’s former chairman Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, also the country’s longest-serving prime minister, is also expected here tomorrow to bolster support for the ruling coalition and further drive its campaign.

PR is aiming to make further inroads into Johor where it had won one federal seat and six state seats in 2008 in its bid to wrest control of Putrajaya from the ruling BN coalition.

The southern state, which is BN’s stronghold and Umno’s birthplace, has 26 federal seats and 56 state seats. BN won 25 and 50 seats respectively in 2008.