Selangor Umno liaison chief Noh Omar has defended Jamal Yunos' "hearses and coffin" stunt, saying the gimmick was "relevant" to the message the latter was trying to relay. 

"He (Jamal) only asked (the menteri besar) to explain to the rakyat why the implementation of the schemes was disappointing," he said, in reference to the state's senior citizens and funeral arrangement assistance schemes. 

"That's why he brought the coffin, to say that it suits the state government's scheme for the dead," Noh told a press conference in Bukit Jalil last night.

Jamal had on Tuesday turned up outside the state secretariat building in Shah Alam, accompanied by 15 hearses and a coffin, to protest what he claimed were abuses of the aforementioned schemes. 

The Sungai Besar Umno chief had claimed representatives and constituency coordinators appointed by the state government were using the RM200 million allocation meant for Skim Mesra Usia Emas (SMUE), a scheme to fund costs incurred on the death of senior family members in Selangor. 

He was however, barred entry into the building and a heated argument ensued as several individuals criticised his interference at the premises. 

PKR Youth deputy chief Afif Bahardin had also accused Jamal of disrupting Muslim funeral services in the state with his antics, that caused public nuisance and a shortage of hearses. 

Meanwhile DAP's Lau Weng San asked Selangor Islamic authorities Jais and Mais to probe Jamal for possibly abusing state assets for his own political gain.

In another statement, PKR Wanita chief Zuraida Kamaruddin also criticised Noh for defending Jamal's stunt.

"While everyone is laughing at Jamal Yunos and his antics, here we have a high-ranking minister supporting his actions and even making up excuses for him," she said. 

Zuraida said Umno should reprimand Jamal for such actions instead of a minister coming to his defence.

"I would like to personally remind Umno to maintain some dignity and do what is right and beneficial for the rakyat," she said.