Bersatu may expedite the party’s grassroots-level election in divisions severely affected by a recent power struggle between party president Muhyiddin Yassin and former deputy Hamzah Zainudin.
According to several Bersatu leaders, the party had set up "new divisions" to completely replace those that saw a mass exodus of their office bearers and supporters, sparked by Hamzah’s expulsion on Feb 14.
They said the polls might be held as early as August to replace these divisions' interim committees appointed by Muhyiddin on March 10.
While the party has not revealed the exact number of affected divisions, they are believed to be in the dozens, including five in Malacca, 11 in Johor, four in Perak, and at least four in Selangor.
"Yes, this is completely new. The (old) division was dissolved, so we just set up a new one," said Selayang Bersatu division interim chief Rafiq Abdullah, who was among those who received “watikah” (letter of commission) from Muhyiddin last month.
The Kuang assemblyperson used to be the Sungai Buloh Bersatu division chief, but was sent to revive Bersatu in Selayang under its new chapter.
He told Malaysiakini that setting up a new division was "easier" for the recovery process as they could replace the whole committee structure and move forward.
Rafiq said all the pro-tem divisions might hold their polls this August when Bersatu branches nationwide hold their annual meeting.
"But this is only if the party headquarters does not postpone the election, because the party constitution allows the leadership to postpone divisional polls for up to 18 months," the lawmaker added.
New setups
It is learned that other divisions that saw new setups include Sepang, now led by former minister Rina Harun, Ampang and Puchong.
In Malacca, where five out of its six divisions had new chapters installed, the polls might be held later than the others.
According to Masjid Tanah Bersatu division pro-tem chief Nazri Ramli, the party's supreme council decided to give Malacca an extension so they can focus on the upcoming state election.
For the record, the current Malacca legislative assembly term expires in December, after which state polls must be held no later than 60 days.
Nazri used to be the Masjid Tanah Bersatu deputy chief under Mas Ermieyati Samsudin's leadership.
The original division's committee members resigned en masse after Hamzah's expulsion, but remained as party members.
Resetting for a ‘solid’ front
Speaking about the new division setup, Nazri described it as a "reset" and believed the move would help them to form a more "solid" front.
"We prefer to reset. Meaning, we won't have those (committee members) who simply hang around.
"So we can form a new line-up of committee, a solid one, with those who share the sentiment of love for the party," he said.
Malaysiakini has contacted Bersatu secretary-general Azmin Ali for comments on the supposed new divisions and their elections, but he brushed it off as "fake news".
He pointed to Muhyiddin's statement after handing appointment letters to the sponsor committees on March 10, where the former prime minister insisted that no Bersatu division has been dissolved.
"The supreme council also noted that no divisions has actually been dissolved.
"We wish to clarify this because, over the past few weeks, following the removal of the deputy president, there were claims that several divisions and their leaders had declared the divisions dissolved.
"None has completely collapsed," Muhyiddin had said, as quoted by the New Straits Times.
Ready for election
Meanwhile, both Rafiq and Nazri believed the recent political turmoil between Muhyiddin loyalists and Hamzah's camp would not have much effect on the party's preparation for the upcoming general and state elections.
Rafiq claimed the exodus of Hamzah's followers did not cause much damage to Bersatu's support in Selayang.
"It's actually not that hard. Especially given that I am now the state assemblyperson for Kuang, and Selayang is under the Kuang constituency, so I know them (the members in Selayang).
"I could complete the division recovery in just 24 hours," Rafiq said, adding that the Selayang Bersatu division has between 3,000 and 4,000 members.
He is also confident that as long as the Perikatan Nasional coalition remains intact, Bersatu and its allies would be able to win Selangor from Pakatan Harapan in the next state polls.
Nazri, meanwhile, said many party members were initially unsure where to stand during the conflict as they have huge respect for Mas Ermieyati, who is also the MP for Masjid Tanah.
"However, I don't see this having caused negative effects on us. We are even seeing more and more party members indicating their willingness to come back and work with us (new division).
"So, this is a positive sign. And regarding the election machinery, I don't think there would be any problem as long as PN still exists in Masjid Tanah.
"This only affects the leadership level where we can see some disorder, but at the ground level, the party members understand and only want to focus on the elections," he said. - Mkini
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