PORT DICKSON: Negri Sembilan wouldn’t have had to head to the polls if Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun stepped down as Mentri Besar, says Umno supreme council member Datuk Seri Mohd Sharkar Shamsudin.
According to Mohd Sharkar, Umno's elected representatives in the state assembly only withdrew support for the Mentri Besar, who is also state Pakatan chairman, instead of the state government.
“It is less than three years, yet we are already heading to the polls again. Umno only withdrew its support for the Mentri Besar and wanted a change because he did not manage the state appropriately.
“If Pakatan Harapan were sincere allies, they could have just asked for the Mentri Besar to step down instead of dragging people back to the ballot box,” he said during a ceramah in Linggi on Monday (July 27).
At the 2023 state polls, both Pakatan and Barisan worked together in the spirit of the unity government.
The unity government was established at the federal level in 2022 following the 15th General Election, where no coalition gained a simple majority.
Apart from Pakatan and Barisan, Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) and Gagasan Rakyat Sabah (GRS), as well as smaller parties, also jointly formed the unity government, leaving Perikatan Nasional as the sole opposition.
He also refuted claims that Umno and Barisan are power crazy, claiming that it was Pakatan doing so.
“They could have just replaced the Mentri Besar with either someone from Barisan or even their own coalition.
“Our promise was to preserve the unity government framework until the next election,” he said.
In April, Negri Sembilan Barisan withdrew support for the Negri Sembilan government led by Aminuddin.
State Umno chief Datuk Seri Jalaluddin Alias said all 14 Umno assemblymen in the state have lost confidence in Aminuddin's leadership in relation to the handling of the state royal crisis.
Negri Sembilan heads to the polls on Aug 1.
