RANTAU, April 13 — Former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak today said Malaysians realise that they made a mistake voting for Pakatan Harapan (PH) in the 14th general elections (GE14) last year.

Najib said Barisan Nasional (BN) acting chairman Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan’s victory in Rantau is a clear sign that people’s confidence in the party is returning.

"I’m very happy we got the win,” Najib told reporters at SJK (C) Bandar Sri Sendayan after the Rantau by-election results were announced.

"It shows that since GE14 there is already a huge ground shift at all levels, especially amongst the youngsters who feel they made a mistake in voting for PH previously.”

The Pekan MP said when he was campaigning in Rantau many people told him about their discontent with the government’s ever-changing policies.

Najib said the public is fed up with the broken promises and PH’s failure to fulfil manifesto pledges coupled with the increased cost of living in the country.

"They are upset with the broken promises, poor economy, increased taxes — which they said they would abolish — lack of business opportunities and the rising cost of living.

"Besides that, the way their ministers conduct themselves have made them the butt of jokes,” he said.

Najib said the people of Rantau have spoken when they voted for Mohamad.

He said it’s a clear sign that Mohamad is a better candidate despite what the government says.

"There was no need for the PKR candidate to campaign because the people already knew that the BN candidate was far superior compared to the PH candidate,” said Najib.

"It’s the quality of the candidate that counts and the people of Rantau have chosen the right candidate for them.”

Just before leaving Najib thanked his supporters for all the support he has received as he battles the many corruption cases against him.

"I’d like to thank those who’ve been supporting me in social media, sharing my posts and posting comments as well.

"The youth these days are very aware of their surroundings by keeping abreast of important matters through social media.

"They have voiced their opinions so strongly. In the end, the citizens are the ones defending me, so a big thank-you to all of them,” Najib said.

Mohamad defeated PH’s Dr S. Streram by a majority of 4,510 votes to win the Rantau state seat he has held for the past 15 years.

Mohamad garnered 10,397 votes to Streram’s 5,887 while independent candidates R. Malarvizhi and Mohd Nor Yasin got 83 and 79 votes respectively.