Johor BN stands firm on defending 40 seats in next state polls

 Johor Umno secretary Abdul Halim Suleiman says the remaining 16 seats would be negotiated with parties that want to partner with BN.

Johor Umno secretary Abdul Halim Suleiman said no decision has been made so far on whether BN will cooperate with other parties or contest alone in the state election which will be due next year.

PETALING JAYA:

 Johor Barisan Nasional intends to maintain the status quo by defending all 40 seats it won in the 2022 state election even if it forms an alliance with other parties or coalitions, including Pakatan Harapan.

Johor Umno secretary Abdul Halim Suleiman said the remaining 16 seats would be negotiated with parties that want to partner with BN in the next state election.

However, he said BN is also prepared to contest all 56 state seats if it decides to go solo.

“Since winning the 2022 state election, BN’s machinery has been working to fulfil its manifesto and responsibilities to the people, including in areas where we lost.

“So, we will defend all 40 seats we won,” he told FMT.

Halim said no decision has been made so far on whether BN will cooperate with other parties or contest alone.

Referring to Johor PKR’s target of contesting 28 seats, Halim said this suggested the party may not wish to cooperate with BN.

“If they want to go solo, that is their right. As for BN, we are always ready,” he said.

FMT quoted analyst Chin Yee Mun as saying that Johor PKR is overreaching with its plan to contest half the seats in the next state polls, given the party’s struggles to make inroads in the state.

He said that PKR had not been able to establish a foothold in Johor even when PH was at its strongest just before the 2022 state election.

Meanwhile, Halim said the strong performance of Johor menteri besar Onn Hafiz Ghazi could make him a potential “poster boy” for BN in the next state election.

Onn Hafiz was appointed to the post after the 15th Johor state election, which saw BN win 40 of the 56 state seats, followed by PH (12), Perikatan Nasional (3) and Muda (1).

Last year, Onn Hafiz said the Johor state election would be held by April 2027 at the latest, in line with the end of the current administration’s five-year term. - FMT