JOHOR BAHRU, July 18 — The official vehicle carrying the Regent of Johor, Tunku Mahkota Ismail, arrived at Istana Bukit Serene here at 11.03am today, ahead of the swearing-in ceremony of the Johor State Executive Council (Exco) members for the new term.

Earlier, vehicles carrying the new Johor State Exco members began arriving at the palace compound through the Jalan Kolam Air gate at 9am.

This was followed by the arrival of vehicles carrying Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi, Johor Council of Royal Court president Datuk Dr Abdul Rahim Ramli and State Secretary Datuk Mohammed Ridha Abd Kadir, which entered the palace compound via the main gate at about 10.19am.

Media practitioners had gathered outside the palace gate as early as 8am today to cover the swearing-in ceremony.

Last Sunday, Onn Hafiz, who is also the Machap assemblyman, was sworn in as Johor Menteri Besar for a second consecutive term after Barisan Nasional (BN) emerged victorious in the 16th Johor State Election.

The election, held last Saturday, saw BN secure 48 out of the 56 state seats, giving the coalition the mandate to form the state government for the new term. — Bernama