JOHOR BARU, Sept 3 — Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi is confident that voters in Pulai will not be influenced by the "political fatwa” (edict) saying that it is "haram” or sinful to vote for Pakatan Harapan (PH) candidate Suhaizan Kayat in the parliamentary by-election on Sept 9.

The Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman believed that Bangsa Johor are more mature and will not be easily fooled by the fatwa issued by Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin during a ceramah at Dataran Utama Kempas here last night.

"I want to ask that person, which Quranic verse, hadith, qiyas or ijma (consensus of scholars) is he referring to? When he was part of the PH 1.0 government, everything was halal, but when they are not aligned with him, he issues a fatwa.

"In my opinion, Bangsa Johor are different from voters in the three states where they are in power. The people of Johor need stability and want elected representatives who can fight for their plight,” he told a press conference after attending a programme at PPR Kempas Permai, Johor Baru here today.

Ahmad Zahid at the same time expressed confidence that the PH-BN alliance would be able to win the by-election for the Pulai parliamentary seat and the Simpang Jeram state seat.

"Each contesting party or candidate must be confident of victory, but we must strive to resolve all the problems faced by the people, no matter how small they are. I am sure Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was here today because he wants to convey a certain message.

"...I’m confident that Johor will remain a fixed deposit for the Unity Government,” he said.

The Pulai parliamentary and Simpang Jeram state by-elections are being held following the death of their incumbent Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub, who was also the Minister of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living, on July 23.

The Election Commision has set polling day for both by-elections for Sept 9, with early voting on Sept 5. — Bernama