The pledge was made by its chairman, Onn Hafiz Ghazi, as the party prepares to face another state election by April next year, amid speculation it could be called earlier.
Referring to the 2018 defeat that saw Barisan Nasional lose control of both Putrajaya and Johor, Onn Hafiz said the party has remained committed to serving the people and advancing the state.
The Johor menteri besar said the mandate given by voters, which saw Umno secure 40 of the 56 state seats four years ago, has been put to good use through a range of planned initiatives and policies.
He said sustained efforts, along with support from all parties, have enabled Johor to achieve a series of milestones, including recording the highest investment inflows and creating about 80,000 job opportunities.
“Johor also recorded the highest GDP growth in the country at 6.4%, while state revenue exceeded RM2.6 billion.
“The state’s agricultural sector recorded the highest sales nationwide, and Johor made history as the first to be recognised as a ‘smart state’,” he said at Umno’s 80th anniversary convention at World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur today.
Onn Hafiz also announced that the Johor government will unveil measures next week to ease cost-of-living pressures through the Bantuan Kasih Johor initiative.
He expressed appreciation for former prime minister Najib Razak and voiced support for efforts to seek justice for the former Umno president.
“Johor has never forgotten Najib’s contributions; we miss him,” he said.
At the same time, he said, Johor Umno supports party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi in his efforts to champion Najib’s cause.
“Johor Umno fully supports all efforts by the president to secure justice for Najib, our ‘Bossku’,” he said.
Najib, 72, was convicted of misappropriating RM42 million in SRC International funds. He was fined RM210 million and sentenced to 12 years’ imprisonment, which he began serving at Kajang Prison on Aug 23, 2022.
However, the Federal Territories Pardons Board later reduced his jail term to six years and lowered the fine to RM50 million.
On April 27, Najib withdrew his appeal against the High Court’s decision on his judicial review application seeking an order to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest.