KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 24): Johor state assembly Speaker Dr Puad Zarkashi has said Umno does not need a “poster boy” for the 15th general election (GE15) and is better off using the time-tested BN logo instead.

In a facebook post on Wednesday (Aug 24), Puad said having a “poster boy” could backfire.

His comments came after disgraced former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak lost in his final appeal at the Federal Court and was whisked off to Kajang Prison on Tuesday (Aug 23).

He said a poster boy cannot be someone who is arrogant and weak.

However, it was unclear whether he alluded the post to Najib or current Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

Najib was the Umno and BN poster boy during the Johor state election earlier this year.

Following Puad’s post, DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang in a statement asked if Puad was regretting that Najib was the Umno and BN poster boy in the recent Johor state election as Najib has become a “liability” to the extent that Puad used the Malay saying, “Harapkan pagar, pagar makan padi”.

“Or is Puad targeting the Prime Minister, Ismail Sabri, and not Najib Razak,” said the Member of Parliament for Iskandar Puteri.