KUALA LUMPUR, March 15 — Umno veteran Tan Sri Shahrir Samad has confessed to feeling “ashamed” that his party mate who led the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition to sweep 40 out if 56 seats in the recent Johor election will not become the state’s mentri besar.
In a late night post on Facebook, the former Johor Baru MP admitted that he had laughed at the BN’s political rivals for their failure to name a mentri besar candidate for Johor in the run-up to last Saturday’s polls, only to have to eat humble pie now that Umno’s MB-designate Datuk Hasni Mohammad will not be taking that post.
“Umno was certain that Datuk Hasni Mohammad as the mentri besar.
“But it wasn’t strong enough it seems and Johor Umno can’t do anything about it. It’s embarrassing,” he wrote on his Facebook account last night,
Shahrir also said Hasni’s statement yesterday, where he called for a young person to lead the state, indirectly shows that another had been named to succeed him.
“Can obtain people’s mandate but not capable to name the party leader for the mentri besar. Not that great, Johor Umno,” Shahrir said, referring to the state Umno chapter.
Shahrir added that he is now “ashamed” to attend the Umno general assembly this weekend.
“I was supposed to be the spokesman for Johor Umno in the general assembly this weekend. But since I’m ashamed of Johor Umno, there is nothing much left for me to say at the meeting.
“Sorry to my friends, I’m very ashamed of what has happened in the Johor election which we have won brilliantly under the leadership of Hasni,” he added.
