Johor state election will all but show UMNO and BN’s true colours, says Khalid Samad

SHAH ALAM - Parti Amanah Negara’s (Amanah) communications director Khalid Abd Samad has clear the air in regards to a statement made by the party's deputy president Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub, who said that support for the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, will be withdrawn should the Johor state election take place.

In an exclusive interview with Sinar Ahad, he said that the statement was taken out of context, and Salahuddin was referring to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Transformation and Political Stability.

According to Khalid, Salahuddin’s statement served as a warning for BN, in the hopes that BN will put the people and the country first, as well as focus on recovering the economy.

He stated that regardless of Amanah’s stance on elections at this point in time, the party will still face them head on because the Johor state election will all but reveal the true colours of Umno and BN.

“For us, the MoU is meant to prevent the 15th General Election (GE15) from taking place too early.

“Barisan Nasional must understand that the aim is to stabilise the economy first and foremost, so that the Covid-19 pandemic can be dealt with before we even think about an election,” he said.

However, he said that Umno and BN refuse to prioritise these issues in their campaigns, despite claiming the need for political stability.

He added that the dissolution of the Johor state assembly goes to show that their words and actions do not align, for such a move will only lead to political instability.

“They hope to win by a landslide under BN, as they did in Melaka," said Khalid.