From 3 seats to none: fragmented PN faces wipeout

 At the Johor election, more was at stake for Bersatu, in seeking to underline its relevance, if any, after PAS ended their political cooperation.

PAS vice-president Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar took over the PN chairmanship from Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin in February as their ties went downhill.

PETALING JAYA:

Perikatan Nasional, which won three seats in 2022, looks likely to be wiped out at the Johor state assembly, following a divided two weeks of campaigning in which coalition partners PAS and Bersatu went separate ways in 27 seats.

The opposition coalition took a heavy hit even before polling day was fixed, when PAS decided early last month to end its political cooperation with Bersatu.

PN’s status and direction were thrown into limbo, even though PAS took over chairmanship of the coalition in February through its vice-president, Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar.

Nonetheless, Bersatu may have had more at stake in the Johor polls, as the party would have been seeking to underline its relevance, if any, to PAS.

However, the Islamic party did not indicate any seriousness about launching a formidable PN challenge to Barisan Nasional, with whom it had been accused of having a tacit political understanding for the election.

Bersatu leaders accused Samsuri of being slow to call for crucial PN meetings to prepare for the state polls, while the other PN component parties appeared to be walking on eggshells as they sought to navigate the coalition’s new dynamics.

Ultimately, PN contested only 33 of the 56 seats at stake, with Bersatu vying for 16, PAS 11, the Malaysian Indian People’s Party (MIPP) five and Pejuang — among the latest additions to PN — one.

Gerakan did not field any candidates due to internal issues with its Johor chapter, while PN’s other new component, former Bersatu deputy president Hamzah Zainudin’s Parti Wawasan Negara, opted to sit out the state election.

The PAS decision to field only 11 candidates raised eyebrows when it was expected to try and further expand its reach in Malay seats across the peninsula.

PAS, whose machinery and support has been credited as being the backbone of PN, also decided not to help any of Bersatu’s 16 candidates campaign, undoubtedly dealing a heavy blow to former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s party.

Bersatu, however, still helped the PAS campaign.

Although PAS ordered its members and supporters to back BN in seats not contested by PN, Bersatu left it to the discretion of its supporters, leaving room for them to back Pakatan Harapan.

PN headed into the polls with just three seats to its name from the 2022 state election: Bukit Kepong and Endau which were held by Bersatu, and PAS’s Maharani seat. The coalition ended up the losers.

Bersatu’s Dr Sahruddin Jamal, a former menteri besar, failed to hold Bukit Kepong, a seat in the Pagoh parliamentary constituency represented by party leader Muhyiddin since 1995.

The party also failed to retain Endau as Alwiyah Talib, who won the seat with Umno in 2018 and then Bersatu in 2022, was elected to a third term as its assemblyman, but is now back in Umno again.

Meanwhile, PAS lost the Maharani seat to BN, while its biggest figure fielded, state chief Mahfodz Omar, failed to wrest Serom from the Umno-led coalition.

Maiden outings for MIPP, Pejuang end in defeat

MIPP’s maiden election outing and Pejuang’s first under the PN banner both ended in disappointment.

MIPP, an MIC splinter, ended up not clashing with MIC in any seat despite both being Indian-based parties. However, its candidates in Bukit Permai, Paloh, Kota Iskandar, Pemanis, and Permas were soundly defeated by those fielded by Umno and MCA.

Pejuang, which challenged for the Gambir seat, was bested in a three-cornered race, while Gerakan retained some dignity by not fielding any candidates, thereby avoiding another election wipeout. Nonetheless, questions will continue to be asked about its failure to help PN attract non-Malay voters, especially from the Chinese community. - FMT