Reliance on allies may blunt Amanah’s values-based politics, analyst says

 Ahmad Zaharuddin Sani Ahmad Sabri says Amanah appears increasingly dependent on Pakatan Harapan instead of its own influence to garner voter support.

An analyst said Amanah appears trapped in an elite discourse that fails to resonate with rural voters. (Facebook pic)

PETALING JAYA:

 Amanah’s values-based politics approach could attract new voters if the party shakes off the impression that it relies too heavily on the strength of its coalition partners, an analyst says.

Ahmad Zaharuddin Sani Ahmad Sabri said Amanah appeared increasingly dependent on Pakatan Harapan instead of its own influence to garner voter support.

He said fellow component parties PKR and DAP appeared more dominant than Amanah in mobilising their core voter base.

Thus, he said, Amanah’s frequent emphasis on values-based politics had yet to translate into tangible political strength on the ground.

“Amanah increasingly looks like a party surviving on the goodwill of its coalition rather than its own strength. The rhetoric of values-based politics risks sounding like a feel-good slogan without real bite,” the analyst from Global Asia Consulting told FMT.

He said Malaysian politics remained strongly driven by identity-based sentiments, particularly those tied to race and religion, which he said had long been leveraged by PAS through its Malay-Muslim protection narrative.

“Amanah, meanwhile, appears trapped in an elite discourse that fails to resonate with rural voters,” he added.

Zaharuddin pointed to the outcome of the 15th general election, which he said highlighted this gap. Amanah won only eight parliamentary seats while PAS secured a significantly larger victory.

“That figure is not merely a statistic; it shows that Amanah’s idealism has yet to translate into real political power,” he said, adding that values-based politics must also be backed by clear economic and education policies, as well as grassroots strategies.

Yesterday, FMT reported that Azli Yusof, a member of Amanah’s national leadership committee, said the party aimed to project values‑based politics – a modern and inclusive vision of Islamic politics that it believes Malay voters are ready to embrace.

Azli, the Shah Alam MP, said that while Amanah was rooted in Islamic principles, it rejected the kind of extreme or right‑wing approaches adopted by other religion-based political parties which it said tended to be judgmental.

Mazlan Ali of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia said values-based politics had the potential to attract support if implemented consistently.

He said although national politics was heavily influenced by racial and religious sentiments, values-driven approaches such as mature politics, welfare-oriented politics, or the Madani concept still had a space in society.

He said values-based politics could be reflected through policies that directly benefit the people, such as cash assistance for the poor and government initiatives like the BUDI95 fuel subsidy programme.

“That, too, is part of values-based politics – giving back to the people,” he said.

Mazlan said Amanah’s main challenge was educating the public to understand that Malay dignity should be upheld not through dominance, but through positive values and meaningful contributions to society.

He said such an approach required time and sustained political education efforts, including instilling positive values through the education system and government programmes.

“If pursued consistently through long-term strategies such as the Rahmah concept once championed by the late Salahuddin Ayub, this form of values-based politics could have a major impact on the rakyat,” he said. - FMT