Najib calls on Malaysians to continue to plant the seeds of unity

(Source: The Star Online)

Najib calls on Malaysians to continue to plant the seeds of unity

KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has urged Malaysians to always appreciate and preserve the peace and prosperity the country is enjoying and discard prejudices against each other to ensure continued stability.

The Prime Minister said it was vital to realise that it was not easy to build and maintain a stable nation as what Malaysia is today.

He said in the context of Islam, national unity could not be achieved if there was no unity among Muslims, adding that constant polemics would be detrimental to all parties.

In his Hari Raya message, Najib noted that the people could celebrate the occasion in peace, free from wars, conflicts or natural disasters that besieged certain countries.

“So, on such special occasions as this, for the sake of our beloved country, let us foster and continue to plant the seeds of unity.”

Malaysian Premier Seeks Unity With Plan to Bolster Economy

Mr. Najib, center, met with his ruling coalition in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.  Getty Images

PUTRAJAYA, Malaysia—Newly elected Prime Minister Najib Razak said he would press ahead with a multibillion-dollar modernization program for Malaysia's economy, adding that he hoped it would help reunite the Southeast Asian nation after the most fiercely contested election in its history.

Mr. Najib's National Front coalition secured around 60% of the seats in Sunday's ballot, but the vote was heavily split between Malaysia's thriving cities, which largely voted for opposition parties, and rural, mostly ethnic-Malay areas that threw their support behind Mr. Najib, the 59-year-old son of Malaysia's second prime minister.

Many of Malaysia's ethnic-Chinese minority, which makes up about a quarter of the population, also switched to opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim's People's Alliance, leaving Mr. Najib's coalition ruling the country with 47% of the popular vote, compared with 50% for its opposition rivals, who allege that electoral fraud swung the result against them. The remaining 3% represented votes for independent candidates or spoiled ballots.

In his first remarks to the international media following the election, Mr. Najib told The Wall Street Journal in an interview on Tuesday that expanding the size and scope of the country's economy would help draw support back to the National Front, which has run the country uninterrupted since independence from Britain in 1957.