BATU PAHAT - BN chairman Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi says the coalition does not view the 35 four-cornered fights it is involved in with opposition as an advantage to win Johor polls.
He said BN will rely on its own strength to win.
"The winds of change have begun to blow in Johor, not only among the Malays ... support from Indian and Chinese voters especially in urban areas has started to shift towards BN candidates,” he told reporters after attending a gathering with the people at the Ayer Hitam Barat voting district centre here today.
Of the 56 seats up for grabs in the polls, two constituencies namely Kempas and Tiram see seven-cornered fights, four are six-cornered contests, eight are five-cornered, 35 are four-cornered, and seven are three-cornered.
Zahid, the Umno president, said the BN Manifesto to be unveiled soon would give hope to the younger generation as it includes state government's offer to second-generation homes to Felda settlers.
He said BN was offering Johoreans a new deal by fielding more than 70 percent new faces, a game-changer for the state.
"Although they will be facing other candidates of the almost same age, academic qualification and new faces, BN's record of having provided 14 Menteri Besar in Johor give us the confidence to form the state government,” he added.
Early voting will be held on March 8 while polling is on March 12.
Meanwhile, Zahid said BN would propose implementing a new minimum wage for Johor if it gets the mandate to form the state government.
This was important to protect the interests of the people, especially the low-income groups, he said.
Human Resource Minister Datuk Seri M. Saravanan had said the government was proposing to increase the minimum wage to RM1,500 a month by the end of this year. - Bernama