Zuhdi: Five states, 40 parliament seats goal is not hot air

MUKTAMAR | PAS' goal of capturing five states and 40 parliamentary seats is not empty talk, because it is based on research, said PAS strategist Mohd Zuhdi Marzuki.

Mohd Zuhdi said the party's research institutes has accumulated data which it used to formulate its strategy.

"We know where we stand now. When the president (Abdul Hadi Awang) says PAS wants 40 parliament seats and five states, it is not empty talk, there is basis for it," Mohd Zuhdi said at the closing of the 63rd PAS muktamar in Alor Setar today.

PAS' goal is to retain Kelantan, and capture Terengganu, Kedah, Pahang and Selangor.

Mohd Zuhdi said the PAS research institute has run over 100 simulations for each seat, while also taking into account the findings of other research bodies such as Invoke and Institute Darul Ehsan.

However, he did not detail any of the research findings

Beware of Amanah

With PAS' decision not to ally themselves with the main opposition coalition Pakatan Harapan, the next general election will likely see many multi-corner contests, which pundits expect will split the opposition votes and benefit BN.

The Islamist party however has expressed confidence that it is a better choice than both BN and Pakatan Harapan.

PAS election director Mustafa Ali said the party's election machinery in all states are already prepared.

He said all PAS state bodies have already been ordered to submit a list of candidates to the central leadership.

Speaking on PAS' ability to retain Kelantan, Mustafa said one thing that must be observed was the presence of splinter group Parti Amanah Negara and whether it would work with BN.

"Maybe they (Amanah) are quietly whispering with BN, no one can deny this and I can't confirm it, but its a possibility in the elections," he said.

Mustafa noted how Kelantan had fallen to BN in 1978 due to an internal split in PAS, with splinter group Berjasa in cahoots with Umno

Likewise, he said PAS was able to recapture Kelantan in 1990 when it teamed up with Umno offshoot Semangat 46.

PAS deputy president Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man had also implied that Amanah was working with BN to "steal" Kelantan from PAS.- Mkini