PM: General election is going to be a surprise

(Bernama) – Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak said the government would not dissolve Parliament to make way for the general election based on one opinion that people favoured him, but the election date would in fact be a surprise to all.

Without giving any indication that the election would be held soon, he said a lot of factors had to be considered before fixing the general election date.

“I cannot say one way or the other. If it (general election) happens, it will be a suprise.

“What is important is to work hard in the spirit of 1Malaysia,” he told reporters after a meet-the-people session at the Machimmaram temple, here, today.

He was commenting on former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s suggestion that Najib consider calling for a fresh general election soon, now that he is enjoying his highest approval rating since assuming office in April last year.

Mahathir said that going by the latest survey carried out by the Merdeka Centre for Opinion Research, Najib stood more than a good chance of leading the Barisan Nasional (BN) to a handsome win.

From the Merdeka Centre survey made public last week, 72% of Malaysians were satisfied with Najib’s performance, which was higher than the 69% he received in April.

Divided into ethnic groups, the survey found 77% of Malays, 58% of Chinese and 80% of Indians expressing satisfaction with the prime minister’s performance.

Najib said BN must first concentrate on strengthening itself before preparing for the next general, while it also needed a strong line-up of leaders.

He said BN could not depend on one survey to decide when to call the next general election as a lot of factors must be considered.