Johor PKR: New MB must not be a ‘yes man’

JOHOR BARU: The state’s next mentri besar should be an independent person who could work closely with his state executive councillors for the people of Johor, said Johor PKR chairman Hassan Abdul Karim.

He should not be under pressure to be a “yes man” to Putrajaya or the palace, Hassan added.

“The MB should look after the interest of the Johor people,” he said.

Hassan, who said that he would be attending a Pakatan Harapan leadership meeting in Kuala Lumpur today, added that PKR might propose its own candidate for the post, although the party would not take advantage of the situation as it wanted political stability in the state.

The mentri besar issue, he said, had been dragging on for some months, and now with the resignation, there would be a new chapter.

“We will hear what Party Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has to tell us about the situation,” he added.

Meanwhile, Johor Umno treasurer Datuk Md Jais Sarday said that he was not surprised with the resignation as Osman was plagued with many issues.

He accused the Pakatan government of having no plans on how to run the state and that it was merely rebranding what Barisan Nasional had done in the past.

“When we were in the government, we benchmarked our progress and development plans to Singapore.

“We wanted to complement them as they are a huge gateway for us to the international market,” he said, adding that such efforts had taken a backseat since Pakatan took over.

Asked about a likely candidate for MB, he said it was a new challenge for Johor as Pakatan did not have strong leaders in the state.

State Government, Science and Technology Committee chairman Tan Hong Pin said the change in state leadership would not affect the stability of the government.