ISKANDAR PUTERI: Pakatan Harapan is not naming anyone as its Johor mentri besar “poster boy” out of respect for the Johor Palace, says Dr Maszlee Malik.
The Pakatan candidate for Puteri Wangsa questioned why it was unnecessary for them to announce a poster boy before the state election result, stressing that the appointment ultimately rests with the Johor Ruler.
“We acknowledge the role of the palace and we do not want to overstep its decision.
“Instead, we are offering a group of capable candidates who are ready to serve the state and the people,” he told reporters after a youth dialogue session here on Friday (July 3) night.
He was responding to a question about Pakatan’s lack of poster boy during the current Johor polls campaign.
During the dialogue, a youth participant asked Maszlee to make sure he would not resign as mentri besar, if appointed, like he did as education minister back in 2020.
Maszlee replied that Pakatan would obey the palace’s appointment if that was the case and said he has never resigned from any posts.
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“Look back at my statement on Jan 2, 2020. I did not say I resigned (letak jawatan), I said I returned the post (memulangkan semula jawatan) to the prime minister,” he said.
Maszlee added that past experience had shown that naming a mentri besar candidate before an election did not necessarily determine who would eventually lead the state.
He pointed to the previous Johor state election in 2022, when Barisan Nasional named Datuk Seri Hasni Mohammad as its mentri besar candidate but Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi was ultimately appointed to the post.
There has also been speculation that Maszlee, who is contesting Puteri Wangsa in a five-cornered fight, is Pakatan’s choice mentri besar.
In 2020, Maszlee, who was then Bersatu supreme council member, announced his stepping down as education minister after a meeting with then prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
