JOHOR BARU, Aug 26 — Former Johor mentri besar Datuk Osman Sapian has rejected questions about his loyalty to Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) after allegations surfaced of his supposed impending exit to join Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s new party, Parti Pejuang Tanah Air (Pejuang).
This follows several social media posts yesterday that alleged the 68-year-old Kempas assemblyman has quit Bersatu after he was publicly seen with several Pejuang leaders during the Slim by-election campaign.
Osman explained that he was in Slim River, Perak on Monday to meet old friends and that his visit had nothing to do with politics.
“I have not met my old friends or travelled outstation for a while. At the same time, I also had some personal business dealings that were not related to politics,” he said briefly when contacted by Malay Mail today.
Pictures of Osman’s presence in the Slim by-election campaign and apparent support for Pejuang’s leaders created a stir yesterday.
Speculation grew after critics claimed that he was affected by his failure to secure a seat in Bersatu’s new 20-member supreme council.
Osman’s actions also fuelled earlier rumours about the possibility of a Johor Bersatu elected representative crossing over to Pakatan Harapan (PH).
The latest criticism against Osman appeared on pro-Umno Facebook page “Ops Johor” that revealed late last night that Pejuang’s Johor chapter had petitioned against him joining the party on the grounds that he is an inept leader.
Osman said he was unfazed by the criticism levelled by Ops Johor against him.
“Let them criticise. It’s good that they still remember me,” he said sarcastically on the Facebook page that is known to be highly critical of the seasoned politician even when he was the Johor mentri besar under the previous PH state administration.
Meanwhile, Johor Bersatu chief Mazlan Bujang brushed aside the rumours and said Osman was still a member of the ruling party.
He added that he hopes the issue can be put to rest as Osman has explained that he was in Slim River to visit longtime friends.
“In fact, he (Osman) still maintains his friendship with many people from other political parties such as Umno, DAP and Amanah.
“Datuk Osman is still a Bersatu member and as a serving state assemblyman, I doubt he will leave a party that is part of the government,” said Mazlan when contacted by Malay Mail.
Known for courting controversy in the past, Osman’s political career started off when he became an activist in his youth. He was considered one of the key figures in social activism in Johor Baru in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Later in life, he was taken under the wing of then Umno strongman and former information minister Tan Sri Mohamad Rahmat and was active in several youth organisations before joining Umno.
Osman then made a name for himself as an Umno divisional warlord, but later went against Mohamad’s son Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamad in a contest for the party’s Pulai division chief post in 2008.
The four-term Kempas assemblyman held the state seat from 1999 to 2013, before he was dropped as a Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate in the 2013 general election.
Osman later left Umno and was instrumental in setting up the Johor Bersatu chapter in 2016.
In the 2018 general election, he contested under PH and managed to win the Kempas seat back from BN.
Osman was then appointed as the new Johor mentri besar after PH came to power in May that year.
However, he resigned in April last year after several controversies, including his visit to Batam in Indonesia during the Pasir Gudang air pollution crisis and also the escalating spat involving the then prime minister Dr Mahathir and the Johor palace.
Osman held office for 11 months, which is the shortest period for a mentri besar in the state’s history.
