PAS will forever be an opposition party given the little strength it and Umno have, said Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin.
He said this in response to PAS vice-president Mohd Amar Nik Abdullah's remarks – that Pakatan Harapan would only last five years.
Muhyiddin said that is the reality was clear when comparing the Harapan coalition against the opposition parties.
"Where is Umno today? Where is Barisan Nasional? They only exist in name.
"From the 13 or 14 members they had before, BN is now only left with two or three components. And they are weak, with no (significant) position.
"Umno fell apart. And looking at the existing situation, what is left of them together with PAS? Comparing between them and Harapan – which is in power and has been strengthened (by Harapan components) – PAS maybe will not win," he told reporters during a press conference at the Bersatu headquarters in Petaling Jaya today.
Today, Sinar Harian quoted Mohd Amar saying that Harapan ruling coalition under Dr Mahathir Mohamad might crumble within the next five years.
Mohd Amar claimed that this could be the case seeing from what he described as lack of understanding among Harapan components.
Muhyiddin dismissed this opinion. He said PAS was jealous of Harapan for being able to form a federal government.
The home minister added that it was PAS which had rejected Harapan's offer to join them in the first place.
"Of course (they will say this about Harapan) – they are the opposition. And PAS will be an opposition party forever.
"We used to be the opposition, and I did say I didn't want to be opposition for long.
"And alhamdulillah Allah gave us the way to form a government. So, PAS is just being jealous. We did discuss with them before to join us (Harapan) but they did not want to."
Chiding PAS for rejecting Harapan's offer, he said the Islamist party did not take it up because they say they fight for Islam.
"Our struggle is even more Islamic. How is it more Islamic? Because we want to form a better government, we reject corruption, want to build a better future and manage the economy efficiently.
"This is all Islamic. So if they assume that we can only survive for five years, I believe that is one inaccurate assumption."
'Big PAS rallies don’t translate to votes'
Muhyiddin was asked about the rally against the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (Icerd), which attracted some 80,000 people and indirectly showed huge Malay support for the party.
To this, he said PAS' ability to rally huge numbers in a protest does not guarantee that such numbers would translate into votes.
"I don't think that can be used as a measurement. What matters is the election. Which is more important – support during an anti-Icerd protest or during an election? We are talking about people's mandate.
"PAS can brag all they want. It is true that many people attend when they organise a rally, not only during the anti-Icerd protest but also on other occasions. They can attract big crowds, even more than we can.
"But when the election comes, they still lose, don’t they? I am not underestimating them, but that is the fact about the people's sentiment." - Mkini
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