Petaling Jaya (The Star/ANN) - Malaysia's major political party Barisan Nasional is cautiously optimistic on its performance in the coming general election, says Prime Minister Najib Razak.
However, the prime minister said the Barisan is not taking anything for granted.
"We believe the people are with the government and they feel that their future is more secure with Barisan," he said during the Conversation with the PM programme aired over TV3 last night.
When asked on when he would call for the elections, Najib said he wanted to show to the people the government's achievements through various initiatives under the transformation agenda.
"It does take time (to show results of the various initiatives). I'm pleased that the outcome is positive.
"When we seek fresh mandate from people, we will be going on a very solid track record that we can show to the people that we have delivered to the rakyat (House of Representatives)," he said.
On the recent incidents in Lahad Datu, he said Malaysia had adequate capabilities and assets to safeguard its security.
"In terms of dealing with the armed intrusion, we certainly have the assets," he said.
"But, as I said, this is a wake-up call. Where there are gaps in terms of our capabilities, we hope that we'll be able to close them."
When asked on the opposition's election manifesto, Najib questioned the funding for its promises.
"The question is funding...that they have not stated. Based on what they have done, many of the promises contained in the (election) manifesto of 2008 have been left as empty promises," he said, adding that nothing was free in this world and someone had to bear the cost of the things to be given away.
