PAS wants to pave way for Hamzah to join PN, says analyst

PETALING JAYA: An analyst believes that PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang’s statement that his party is reassessing its relations with Bersatu is to pave the way for Hamzah Zainudin and his supporters to be admitted into Perikatan Nasional (PN).

Hadi did not rule out the possibility of PAS contesting the next general election (GE16) without Bersatu following what he termed as a series of “unsatisfactory” moves by the party, including how it blocked efforts to bring more Malay-Muslim parties into PN.

Ahmad Zaharuddin Sani Ahmad Sabri of Global Asia Consulting said PAS likely believes that Hamzah would strengthen PN’s grassroots support, given his experience as a political strategist and in federal administration.

Not many Bersatu leaders can boast of having the same credentials, he said.

“Hadi’s criticism is not a normal reprimand. It is apparent that he does not like the idea of Bersatu trying to control who joins PN.

“He wants to open the door for Hamzah’s bloc, who are perceived as having greater political strategy prowess, to be admitted into PN,” he told FMT.

Hamzah, the former opposition leader and Bersatu deputy president, was sacked by the party in February at the height of a leadership tussle with party president Muhyiddin Yassin.

Several leaders aligned with him have also either been sacked, suspended, or issued with warnings.

A number of parties have applied to join PN, including Mukhriz Mahathir’s Pejuang, Ibrahim Ali’s Putra, and Berjasa, which, according to rumours, will soon be taken over by Hamzah.

The PN Supreme Council meeting last weekend had been expected to admit new members, but the coalition later said it agreed to only form electoral pacts with external parties rather than add new components.

Berita Harian reported that Bersatu’s representatives on the council protested against admitting new members for fear that Hamzah might join one of the parties seeking membership.

‘Dissatisfaction and frustration growing’

Azmi Hassan of Akademi Nusantara said PAS has long harboured dissatisfaction and frustration with Bersatu, but Hadi’s latest statement shows that the issues are worsening.

He said the bigger problem is not Bersatu’s opposition to admitting new members in PN, but how its internal crisis is chipping away at voter confidence in the coalition.

“That is what PAS is really concerned about, because Bersatu’s issues also negatively affect PAS,” he said.

Mazlan Ali of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia does not dismiss the possibility of a new opposition front, with Hamzah and his allies replacing Bersatu as PAS’s main partner.

“There has been a lot of tension and it’s reaching boiling point because of Bersatu’s opposition towards Hamzah, who has done so much for PN,” he said, citing Hamzah’s previous posts of opposition leader as well as PN deputy chairman and secretary-general.

Separately, Syaza Shukri of International Islamic University Malaysia said PAS has come to realise that it has been receiving the short end of the stick in partnering with Bersatu.

She said PAS is being pragmatic and wants to keep its options for political alliances open, including with Umno.

“Bersatu, on the other hand, remains overconfident that the names sticking by Muhyiddin are enough to make the party a kingmaker, but their political calculations are off,” she said.

المصدر: Free Malaysia Today