“Fake statement” clouds united PN front in Johor, N9 state polls; PAS, Bersatu still at loggerheads

 

THE ‘brotherly’ rift between PAS and Bersatu has reared its ugly head after the opposition faction was made to deny that Perikatan Nasional (PN) would be pulling out from the upcoming Johor (July 11) and Negeri Sembilan (N9) (Aug 1) state polls.

This follows a media statement by PN secretary-general Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan in the aftermath of the PN supreme council emergency meeting on Monday (June 22) evening at the PAS headquarters in Kuala Lumpur to discuss internal coalition matters, including the upcoming state elections.

Apparently, the statement which was also posted on the Facebook page of PN chairman Datuk Seri Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar (before being deleted) had stated that the opposition faction would not be participating in both state polls, hence the use of the PN logo “is disallowed by all means”.

That PN was eventually made to declare the statement as “fake” despite availability of screenshot evidence has sent tongues wagging over PAS’ insincerity given the “real culprit who spread the misinformation is the PN chairman himself”.

‘PAS wants to return to UMNO fold’

After all, one commenter claimed that the same statement had also briefly appeared on the FB page of former UMNO warlord Tan Sri Annuar Musa who is now a PAS supreme council member.

One commenter even insinuated that Samsuri who is also the Terengganu Menteri Besar is merely a “puppet”.

“It’s true then that the PN chairman is actually fake for the real chairman is the Rusila (PAS president Tan Sri Hadi Awang’s power base) mullah hahahaha … God wants to show PAS is munafik (hypocrite),” he mocked.

As one commenter wisely observed, the original statement is an indication that PAS is unkeen to participate in the Johor and N9 state polls with the Islamist party trying to lure UMNO back by reviving their now defunct Muafakat Nasional (MN) alliance.

“It’s true that PAS plans not to participate in the Johor, N9 and (soon) Melaka state elections in order to keep UMNO in mind so that they can join forces in other states. The problem is that Bersatu, Gerakan and MIPP (Malaysian Indian People’s Party) don’t agree,” he justified.

“Even if you contest, it’s a waste of time, you’ll lose. Since the majority of the people in these three states don’t like PAS, the only one who can overthrow UMNO and BN (Barisan Nasional) is PH (Pakatan Harapan),” quipped another observer.

Aside from the fake statement, Bersatu is still at loggerheads with PAS which is keen to admit Parti Cinta Malaysia (PCM) into PN. (Editor’s Note: PCM which has been re-branded as Parti Wawasan Negara is helmed by former Bersatu deputy president Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin.)

Against the backdrop of PAS having severed its ties with Bersatu recently, the latter has warned that accepting a new party led by former Bersatu members who have been sacked by their party would only add to more internal friction within PN.

“In addition, PCM’s application to join PN is irregular,” Bersatu hit out in a statement.

“The application was made by Datuk Seri Saifuddin Abdullah in his capacity as PCM’s secretary-general. However, the official review found that the current PCM secretary-general (2026-2027) is Yeo Kwee Kwang.

Based on our review as of yesterday (June 22), the leadership line-up change and the change of name from PCM to Parti Wawasan Negara have yet to be approved by the Registrar of Societies (ROS).

Using a party name that is not approved by the ROS is an offence under the Societies Act 1966.” –   Focus Malaysia