Malaysia’s Najib Razak fires starting gun for battle royale with one-time mentor Mahathir
The expectation among political watchers is that the vote will be held in late April or early May, just before the start of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan
Najib, 64, is expected to win the contest, according to recent nationwide surveys but the opposition is banking on pulling off some surprises.
In a televised statement, Najib said he had received consent from the country’s constitutional king to dissolve parliament on Saturday.
“With my deputy Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and other leaders from the [ruling] Barisan Nasional coalition, I will now travel across the country to explain our manifesto to voters and urge them to give us the support to once again form a strong and stable government,” Najib said in the speech which was beamed on state television and Facebook Live.
The premier touted the country’s recent stellar economic showing – it recorded 5.9 per cent GDP growth in 2017 – as evidence that his economic transformation plans were working, and criticised the opposition for describing the country as a “failed state”.
He added: “We have delivered and we will continue to deliver. I seek your mandate for Barisan Nasional to rule for another five years.”
Najib’s the election favourite, but is there a Malay tsunami coming?
