PONTIAN, Oct 7 — Johor Umno chief Datuk Seri Hasni Mohammad is hopeful that the party’s central leadership will field Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin as a candidate in the 15th general election.
Hasni said Mohamed Khaled, a former Johor mentri besar, should ideally be fielded as a Barisan Nasional (BN) parliamentary candidate this time as the latter is also Umno vice-president.
“I am confident that Umno’s Johor chapter will certainly want one of the party’s vice-presidents from this state to be given the opportunity to contest in GE15,” Hasni, another former Johor mentri, told reporters during the Pontian Umno division Puteri wing meeting here today.
Present was Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan, who is also the Pontian MP.
But Hasni declined to comment when asked about rumours that Mohamed Khaled might be chosen to contest in either the Kota Tinggi or Mersing federal constituencies.
He said that it was up to the party’s top leadership to decide on the matter.
“It's not only Mohamed Khaled who is unsure where he will be contesting in, I am also in a similar situation like him,” the Benut assemblyman said, referring to his own candidacy for a Johor parliamentary seat.
Hasni also told reporters that Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi who is also BN chairman, had recently appointed him to be the coalition’s Johor state election director, while mentri besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi will be Umno’s state operations director for GE15.
Hasni also said that Johor Umno is expected to choose some 60 per cent of first-timers to run for public office this coming national election and that 30 per cent are to be women candidates.
“With that, Umno will be contesting in 17 parliamentary seats in Johor, while MCA will take eight and MIC one,” he added.
During the Johor state election held early this year,70 per cent of BN candidates were new faces who won 40 out of the 56 seats up for grabs.
