MOHAMED Khaled Nordin said Amanah’s threat to withdraw support for the federal government if elections were held in Johor was because it feared facing the voters.

The Umno vice-president said the Pakatan Harapan (PH) pact, of which Amanah is a member of, had taken a beating in the recent Malacca and Sarawak elections.

“Whether elections are needed or not in Johor is a decision to be made by the state government and the Johor palace. Any intimidation or threats from PH will not be a factor in the decision to dissolve the Johor assembly.

“If PH withdraws its support for the prime minister, Barisan Nasional (BN) is ready to face a general election and form a government without PH’s support,” he said in a statement today.

In the wake of rumours that Johor might go to the polls, Amanah deputy president Salahuddin Ayub yesterday said Putrajaya should just dissolve Parliament and call for a general election.

The Pulai lawmaker had said Amanah would withdraw from its political understanding with Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s government if early elections were called in Johor.

“Don’t play around with our support. We are sincere and we walk the talk. Until this day we have not been playing politics. If you want to hold elections in Johor, we (Amanah) will withdraw our support.

“But if you really want to (hold Johor elections), then dissolve Parliament too and hold a general election concurrently. If you want to get the people’s mandate and you’re confident that you can get their support, then just dissolve Parliament now,”  Salahuddin was quoted as saying by Free Malaysia Today.

Salahuddin, who is also Simpang Jeram assemblyman, said PH has backed the Johor government, lending its support when it came to the state’s annual budget and various bills.

The former Johor menteri besar said the threat from Amanah was reason alone for state and federal elections to be called immediately.

He said no government should be placed on tenterhooks by its political rivals all the time.

Khaled said calling for state polls was not an irresponsible act but a responsible decision.

“We must return to the people for a mandate, when the government is in a fragile and unstable situation. We cannot take a hard position that we are in power but depend on the opposition to hold on to it,” he said.

Rumours of Johor elections began soon after the death of Kempas assemblyman Osman Sapian of Perikatan Nasional (PN) on December 21.

The Johor government, comprising BN and PN, currently has a one-seat majority in the state assembly – 28 to PH’s 27. – January 16, 2022.