On one front, Umno president Datuk Seri Najib Razak appears to be courting the Islamist opposition, PAS. The two parties, along with the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) party in Sarawak, Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB), can form a new Malay-Muslim political force.
Among the opposition, meanwhile, an alliance dubbed Pakatan Rakyat 2.0 is emerging between DAP, PKR and Gerakan Harapan Baru (GHB), which is still a splinter movement and yet to become a full-fledged political party.
An Umno-PAS-PBB alliance could establish a strong Malay-Muslim political force in the country, but it would also result in communal politics, with Malay-Muslims on one side (the government) and non-Malays, non-Muslims on the other side (the opposition).
She did not rule out the possibility that Umno and PAS would form a strong political force, but said it would be a disaster for a multiracial country like Malaysia.
"PAS might not ally with Umno, but for the sake of political expedience, it could work with Umno for the next general election," said Welsh, who is attached to a university in Taiwan and the Habibie Centre in Indonesia.
The overtures by Umno and PAS to one another have been there.
Of late, several PAS leaders, with the exception of deputy president Datuk Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man, have appeared friendly towards Umno.
These include PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang warning PAS lawmakers not to support any parliamentary vote of no-confidence against Najib, the prime minister.
The prime minister has gone on record to thank PAS leaders for supporting him, even as he sacked his deputy, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, and Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal, from the Cabinet.
Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom has revealed that Najib met with PAS spiritual advisor Datuk Dr Haron Din and PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang thrice to discuss hudud and its implementation.
Former Umno minister Datuk Raja Nong Chik has said Umno welcomes any cooperation with PAS, and this could begin with the long-delayed review of electoral boundaries.
How things develop on the opposition side will also impact the strengthening of ties between Umno and PAS, with GHB making moves to start a new Islamist party that will replace PAS's role in a new Pakatan Rakyat.
Professor Datuk Dr Mohammad Redzuan, a history professor from Universiti Malaya (UM), said GHB would grow stronger if PAS cooperated with Umno.
"More than half of PAS members will join GHB because their hatred towards Umno has been planted in them for so long," he told The Malaysian Insider.
He believed PAS was better off working alone, to prevent the Islamist party from breaking up.
"Never mind becoming allies, if PAS works with Umno, it will follow in the footsteps of Berjasa. And who knows what's happened to that party," said Redzuan, referring to the splinter party that was formed out of PAS's internal crisis in 1977.
Berjasa, or Barisan Jemaah Islamiah Se-Malaysia, was founded by Datuk Muhamed Nasir, the former Kelantan menteri besar, after he was sacked from PAS.
It worked with Umno to topple the PAS-led government in Kelantan, but quickly faded away from mainstream politics when it separated from Umno and worked alone.
- TMI
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