BN intends to contest at least 115 parliamentary seats in the next general election to ensure that the coalition returns to lead the federal government.
At least three sources who attended a closed BN retreat held at its official residence in Sri Satria, Putrajaya, on Saturday told Malaysiakini that BN chairperson Ahmad Zahid Hamidi expressed the intent during the meeting.
"Zahid sees the move as important to erode the perception that BN is now just a 'second player' behind Pakatan Harapan in the unity government.
"Zahid also stressed that BN can no longer be seen as the number two coalition. We need to contest at least 115 seats so that we are not seen as weak.
"If BN wins more seats than Harapan, it will lead the government in GE16," one of the sources said on condition of anonymity.
It is understood that nearly 200 delegates from all BN component parties attended the retreat, as well as Friends of BN, with each party sending about 15 representatives.
The source said Zahid warned that if BN only contests on a small scale - around 50 or 60 seats - it will give ammunition to the opposition to attack Umno.
"Zahid said that if BN contests a few seats, Malay voters will see Umno as being afraid of DAP and willing to hand over traditional BN seats to Harapan.
"This is a big risk for the party's survival. So, contesting at least 115 seats will definitely result in overlapping seats with Harapan in GE16," the source added.
Harapan’s challenging times
Beyond perception concerns, the strategy is also influenced by BN’s internal assessment that Harapan is going through one of its most challenging periods.
According to a source from one of the Friends of BN parties, the coalition sees non-Malay voters' support for Harapan at its lowest level, especially those from the Indian community, who are allegedly starting to distance themselves from Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's leadership.
"This dissatisfaction stems from several statements by Anwar that are seen to touch on the sensitivities of the community, especially his instructions to local authorities to 'clean up' temples built without permission or on illegal land.
"The prime minister's recent statement on the illegal temple issue is seen as pressure on the Indian community.
"Therefore, there is no point in BN continuing to follow Harapan in GE16 if our own partner is losing the support of non-Malay voters who are their grassroots supporters," the source said.
Lack of balance
During the meeting, the lack of balance in the coalition government cabinet positions was raised as another strong reason for BN to lead the government after GE16.
A source from MCA cited an Umno minister as saying that the composition of the cabinet did not reflect the contribution of seats given by BN to the government.
"The minister said that although BN contributed 30 percent of the parliamentary seats in the government, it was not reflected in the cabinet. We did not get 30 percent of the ministerial positions.
"He also claimed that the ministries allocated to BN were not seen as people-centric ministries. So, to look after the interests of the people more effectively, BN needs to lead the government," the source said.
Malaysiakini has contacted several BN leaders who attended the retreat for comment.
Drastic shift
BN's intention to contest 115 seats is seen as a drastic shift compared to Zahid's open support for Harapan before.
The cooperation between BN and Harapan began after the results of the last general election in November 2022, which saw a hung Parliament when no coalition obtained a simple majority of 113 seats.
BN, which only won 30 seats, the worst result in its history, ended up becoming the kingmaker to form the government after Zahid led negotiations to support Anwar as the prime minister.
The move surprised many parties as Umno had approved the "No DAP, No Anwar" motion in its general assembly before the election.
Zahid has often defended Anwar in various statements and described the BN-Harapan cooperation as the best formula for national stability, going so far as to hint that the pact will continue into GE16.
However, the latest developments during the retreat show that BN is now starting to plan its return to dominance and no longer wants to simply ride on Harapan's strength. - Mkini
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