KUALA LUMPUR: Caretaker Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob has listed four commitments for Malaysia if given the opportunity to continue to helm the country’s administration after the 15th general election (GE15).
He said the first is to unite the people for the wellbeing and welfare of the Keluarga Malaysia (Malaysian Family), while the second is to foster economic prosperity and national development.
The third, according to Ismail Sabri, is to preserve the sanctity of Islam without sidelining other religions in line with the provisions in the Federal Constitution and the fourth, to strengthen the integrity of the country’s governance.
“This is my commitment to Malaysia, for the sake of the country’s stability and prosperity. I, Ismail Sabri Yaakob, humbly appeal to all voters to trust me and Barisan Nasional (BN) to lead the country for the next term.
“May Allah SWT continue to bless and preserve the country and the Malaysian Family. Ya Allah, we truly surrender to You. Vote for Barisan Nasional. Thank you Malaysian Family!” he said in his GE mandate today.
He added it was not an easy task for him in assuming the responsibility of leading the country when sworn in as Prime Minister on Aug 21, 2021, the third Prime Minister in the same term, and that the transition of three governments in a three-year period was a dark episode for the country.
According to him, at that time the country was facing the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic with the number of daily patients reaching tens of thousands, killing hundreds of people every day and causing medical facilities to be almost paralysed.
Not only that, he said, the country was also facing an economic crisis with unemployment increasing by more than 700,000 people and many business sectors were forced to close down and people losing their source of income.
“Throughout the 15-month period, these are the 15 initiatives that we have achieved together. Today, the situation has improved and we are able to move forward, but there is still much that we need to do to become a nation that is strong together and is respected again on the world stage.
“On Nov 19, the Malaysian Family will carry out its responsibility to ensure that this country continues to be administered well,” said Ismail Sabri, who is the incumbent Bera Member of Parliament (MP).
He has been Bera MP since 2004 and in GE15, he is defending the seat against Pakatan Harapan (PH) candidate Abas Awang and Asmawi Harun of Perikatan Nasional (PN).
The prime minister candidates for other contesting parties in GE15 are PH chairman Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and PN chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
The Election Commission has set Nov 19 (Saturday) as the polling day for GE15. – BERNAMA