JOHOR BAHRU, July 11 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim tonight spearheaded the final push of Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) campaign for the 16th Johor State Election (PRN) through the ‘Grand Finale Johor Ke Depan: Undi Harapan’ programme in Pasir Gudang, just hours before the campaigning period concludes at 11:59 pm last night. 

The arrival of Anwar, who is also the PH Chairman, at around 10:05 pm was greeted with thunderous cheers from supporters who had flooded the venue since this afternoon, colouring the campaign’s closing stage with a sea of red and a waving display of party flags.

Also present were PH’s top leadership line-up to voice their support for the coalition’s candidates in a final bid to win the people’s confidence before more than 2.7 million Johor voters begin casting their ballots at 8:00 am tomorrow.

Among those in attendance were Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) President Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu, who is also the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security; PKR Vice President and Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari; and DAP Secretary-General and Transport Minister Anthony Loke.

In his speech, Anwar emphasised that elections are not merely about securing victories for candidates or parties, but rather about granting a mandate to a government capable of protecting the people’s interests and advancing the nation.

He said that every vote cast is to ensure the country continues to be administered by a government that works as an unified team, prioritises the welfare of the people, and delivers development that can be enjoyed by all segments of society.

“Why do you need to vote? Because we want to protect ourselves and our country. It is not solely for Pakatan Harapan or our candidates. We work as a team… we work to rise up and for the people of our nation,” he said.

Anwar said that unity among citizens of various ethnicities must continue to be strengthened through mutual respect, reminding everyone that every Malaysian - regardless of race - deserves to be respected as an equal citizen contributing to the nation’s progress.

Earlier, while attending the ‘Bahru Syok Festival’ programme in Perling, Anwar reminded the country’s youth to always safeguard friendship and harmony among the different races in the nation.

“Remember, we became a peaceful country because we are united, so do not give any room to extremists to divide our unity,” he said.

Prior to that, Anwar, who is also the Finance Minister, attended the ‘Yok! Merahkan Johor! Undi Harapan’ programme in Kulai to round up the PH campaign trail.

The 16th Johor State Election sees BN and PH fielding 56 candidates each, followed by Perikatan Nasional (33), Parti Bersama Malaysia (15), the Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (four), while Parti Orang Asli Malaysia and Parti Sosialis Malaysia are fielding one candidate each, alongside the participation of six Independent candidates.

Before the dissolution of the State Legislative Assembly on June 1st, BN held 40 seats, followed by PH (12), PN (three), and Muda with one seat.

To get the latest updates on the 16th Johor State Election, visit https://prn.bernama.com/johor/. — Bernama