Barisan Nasional (BN) will win in the 13th General Election, said former Finance Minister Tun Daim Zainuddin, who correctly predicted the 2008 General Election results.

The 74-year-old said BN only needs support from the fence-sitters to win as it has a secure over 4 million votes through its members.

Daim also said if given a choice between Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, he would opt for Najib.

“I will give Najib the chance. I want Najib to win because I don't think Anwar is the right candidate to be prime minister.

“I believe he will mess up the country by getting advice from the likes of the IMF (International Monetary Fund), World Bank and Wolfowitz (Paul Wolfowitz, former World Bank president).

“I will support Najib, but he must fight corruption and crime, strengthen the nation's security and review the education system,” he told New Sunday Times.

Daim urged Malaysians to give Najib a mandate.

“Give Najib a chance. Five years. Test him. Give him the mandate. He is doing a fairly good job. Let's see him deliver and continue with his transformation policies,” he said.

The veteran former politican also offered his own nuggets of wisdom to Najib.

Daim, who warned that Pakatan Rakyat (PR) may outride BN if the latter fails to muster unity within the coalition, said Najib should reshuffle the cabinet.

“Bring in new faces. People think he is carrying too much deadwood in the cabinet. Most are already past their use-by date.

“On the nation's security, every day in the media and on television, there are news reports of murder and crime. You say our country is safe, but if people don't feel safe, they will not believe you regardless of the statistics.

“On corruption, tell the rakyat that the government is serious in wanting to get rid of it. But it cannot do it alone, it needs the rakyat's help. Raise the awareness of rakyat on the evils of corruption and get schools involved in it. Educate the students. If the government and rakyat work together, we can succeed,” he advised.

Prior to the 2008 political tsunami, Daim predicted that five states would fall to the hands of the opposition.

Following his prediction, Kedah, Penang, Perak, Selangor and Kelantan slipped through BN’s hands.-