The people now realise they need the sultans to prevent the prime minister and his wife from becoming "king and queen", said former information minister Zainuddin Maidin.
He was commenting on Johor ruler Sultan Ibrahim Ismail Iskandar's hard hitting speech yesterday.
The former Utusan Malaysia editor-in-chief asked if those elected by the people of Johor, including Umno division chiefs in the state and the menteri besar understood the meaning contained in the speech.
He noted how the sultan had urged elected representatives to execute their duties for the interest of the people and not for personal gains.
However, Zainuddin (photo), who is known as Zam, said this was not the case with many Umno division leaders in the state.
He also zeroed in on Shahrir Abdul Samad, the Johor Bharu chief and BN Backbenchers Club (BNBBC) president, who has defended Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.
"But many Umno division leaders, including Shahrir are more inclined to think about their future interests even in their old age.
"There was once when his (Shahrir's) name was cherished for defending principles, what a shame," he said in a blog post.
In his speech to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Johor Special Forces Regiment, Sultan Ibrahim warned Putrajaya not to fool the people by whitewashing the nation's woes.
"The rakyat today are a generation of smart and learned people who can dissect information they receive.
"So please do not take them as fools by feeding them rosy news and information to hide what is really going on," he had said.
Agreeing with the sultan, Zainuddin, a close ally of former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad, said the people do feel like fools for being fed with "colourful" explanations to "conceal the truth".
In issuing the reminder, he said the sultan also stressed that he was not willing to interfere in politics.
"But His Highness' statement has led to the people understanding the role of the sultans as saviours of the people and why there is a need for them," he added.
The Johor royal household has been the most critical of the current administration over the various scandals such as 1MDB and RM2.6 billion donation.
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