JOHOR BARU: Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi is no stranger to Johor’s political landscape as he begins a second term as Mentri Besar, following Barisan Nasional’s successful outing in the just-concluded Johor election, carrying forward a distinguished political legacy.
The 48-year-old is the great-grandson of the late Datuk Onn Jaafar, Umno’s founder and Johor’s seventh mentri besar.
He is also the grandson of Malaysia’s third prime minister, the late Tun Hussein Onn, underscoring a lineage deeply rooted in both Johor and the nation’s political history.
Onn Hafiz secured a renewed mandate after Barisan won 48 of the 56 state seats in Saturday’s polls, improving on the 40 seats the coalition captured in the 2022 election.
The expanded majority strengthens his mandate to continue the development and governance agenda he began after taking office as Mentri Besar on March 15, 2022.
Born on March 2, 1978, Onn Hafiz received his early education at the Royal Military College before earning a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Hertfordshire in the United Kingdom.
A father of four, he began his career with international audit and consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), where he worked from 2001 to 2004 before moving into the corporate sector.
Between 2005 and 2013, he served in several corporate leadership roles, including as a director of Chin Well Holdings Bhd and chief executive officer of KMB Sdn Bhd.
His corporate experience has shaped an administrative style that places emphasis on efficiency, investment promotion and economic growth.
Onn Hafiz entered active politics as a member of the Umno youth executive council and Sembrong Umno youth chief between 2012 and 2018.
He also served as political secretary to Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein who was defence minister from 2013 to 2018 before being elected as the Layang-Layang assemblyman in the 14th General Election in 2018.
Following that victory, he was appointed as Johor tourism, youth and sports committee chairman, serving from 2019 to 2022.
He later contested and won the Machap state seat in the 2022 state election, paving the way for his appointment as Johor’s 19th mentri besar, succeeding Datuk Hasni Mohammad after Barisan formed the state government.
During his more than four years at the helm of the Johor administration, Onn Hafiz has focused on advancing the “Maju Johor 2030” agenda, the state’s long-term development blueprint, centred on economic expansion and attracting investment.
Within Umno, he has served as Johor Umno liaison committee chairman and Simpang Renggam division chief since 2023.
For the latest updates on the 16th Johor state election,visit https://elections.thestar.com.my/
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