The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, should immediately suspend Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom as Minister and Datuk Johari Baharum as Deputy Minister if Kedah Wanita chief Datuk Maznah Hamid is telling the truth that she had been tricked into the press conference yesterday declaring loss of confidence in Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir as Kedah Mentri Besar.
I do not want to be entangled in the question whether Mukhriz is the best person to be the Kedah Mentri Besar, but the revelations by Maznah is most shocking, outrageous and unacceptable, totally against the fifth Rukunegara precept of “Morality and Good Behaviour”.
If what Maznah said is true, then Jamil Khir and Johari Baharom are not fit to be Minister and Deputy Minister respectively, as Malaysians are entitled to question as to how persons who have no respect or regard for the Rukunegara principles and who acted totally without the most elementary sense of political morality can be allowed to be Minister or Deputy Minister.
What Maznah told Sinar Online cannot be ignored or disregarded if true.
She said that she had received instructions to attend a private briefing by the state Umno leadership but found herself ushered into a row of other leaders at a press conference without knowing what it was about.
Kedah Umno deputy chief Datuk Seri Ahmad Bashah Hanipah, who held the press conference, then announced that the state party’s leaders had lost confidence in Mukhriz, who is also Kedah Umno liaison chief.
She said that chief of the state women’s wing and division, she attended the briefing to hear updates on the party especially in Kedah.
Upon arriving at the venue, there was no briefing. Instead, she and several other leaders were told to line up in front as part of a press conference, when in fact she had no idea what the subject or purpose of the press conference was about.
She said her presence there did not mean she supported calls for Mukhriz’s removal, and instead wanted an explanation from the Umno leadership.
The ball as to whether Khir Jamil and Johari Baharum should be retained as Minister and Deputy Minister respectively in the light of their misbehaviour in utter disregard of the Rukunegara is now in Najib’s court.