Onn Hafiz to present vision, mission for Johor on June 14

He said the vision and mission among others would set a comprehensive direction covering short-, medium- and long-term plans for policies in the administrative, social and economic aspects of the state under the Barisan Nasional (BN)-led Johor government, after gaining a large mandate when winning 40 out of 56 seats in the Johor state election in March.

Giving a glimpse of the mandate's essence, Onn Hafiz said the state government will give priority to the basics that are important to the people such as preparing infrastructure and facilities for example roads, flood relief, land-related issues, health facilities, improving job opportunities and existing government policies as well as building a more competitive Johor economy.

"This has to wait till June 14. I view this (mandate) as important. I think many are asking, where do I want to take this state that we love, and I intend to answer that question on June 14.

"(Also) I know that it (mandate) is very important as whether this vision can be implemented or not, it largely depends on commitment and togetherness of them (civil servants) to make it a success," said Onn Hafiz during an exclusive interview with Bernama at his office in Kota Iskandar here.

The Menteri Besar's mandate ceremony on Tuesday will be attended by state and federal civil servants.

During this inaugural interview, Onn Hafiz, 44, who is also the state assemblyman for Machap, expressed his appreciation to former Menteri Besar Datuk Hasni Mohammad and the previous leadership for forming a strong foundation and clear road map for the state.

He said he never thought he would be appointed as the 19th Menteri Besar of Johor but accepted the appointment with open arms, and was determined to serve the people of the state as best he could.

"Firstly, I've never expected to become Menteri Besar but Datuk Hasni Mohammad as the 18th Menteri Besar, has set a very good foundation and I have learnt a lot from him when I was an exco. There was a clear road map in terms of what needed to be done for Johor.

"I am very grateful for the stability and clear direction that has been shown by Datuk Hasni when he was the Menteri Besar," said the former chairman of the Tourism, Youth and Sports Committee during Hasni's previous administration.

Onn Hafiz, who previously served for 12 years with Senior Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein, including holding the post of Hishammuddin's political secretary, said the experience and knowledge, as well as exposure given at the federal level, also helped him carry out his duties and responsibilities of the Johor government's top position.

"It served as good exposure for me as I saw how my minister met with foreign delegations...I learned so much through the position and was also exposed to other ministers. So, it was very good exposure, a pretty good experience and I matured a lot," he said.

Insisting on concentrating as the "captain" who navigates the Johor government, Onn Hafiz said many of Johor's strengths could be highlighted including the state's strategic geographical position adjacent to developed country Singapore and adjacent to two major waters namely the South China Sea and Straits of Melaka, thus can drive the rapid growth of its three ports.

"So, there are many advantages. Now, how do I capitalise on that, so again back to the basics...things like to ease (procedures) of doing business, we need to cut down on red tape and things that should be completed, if it used to take six months, will now take one month.

"These are the things that are in the pipeline. I cannot tell you what yet, but we are looking at administrative matters to make Johor efficient. When Johor is efficient, it becomes easy for people to do business and we want that image for Johor. I want to make Johor clean first, I want to make Johor safe," he added.