PH 2.0 will be doomed from the get-go, says analyst

 

Muhyiddin Yassin and PKR president Anwar Ibrahim during ‘happier’ times. (AFP pic)

PETALING JAYA: A Bersatu and Pakatan Harapan (PH) reunion aimed at defeating Barisan Nasional (BN) will be doomed from the start given the “bad blood” between them, says a political analyst.

Azmil Tayeb.

Azmil Tayeb of Universiti Sains Malaysia said such a reunion will neither be stable nor sustainable because of the parties’ many differences.

“It would be hard to sell the coalition to PH supporters, compelling them to sit out the election or vote for other parties,” he said in commenting on Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin’s remarks that the party was prepared to cooperate with any party to ensure straight fights against BN in the 15th general election (GE15).

This came in the wake of Amanah deputy president Salahuddin Ayub saying PH should be open to talks with all opposition parties ahead of GE15 to put up a united front to defeat BN.

Speculation over a possible reunion prompted BN adviser and former prime minister Najib Razak to take a jab at his rivals, cautioning Malaysians to brace themselves for “PH 2.0”.

Azmi Hassan.

Azmi Hassan of Akademi Nusantara said a reunion was unlikely as Bersatu had little to offer PH after disastrous outings in the Melaka and Johor state elections.

“While they (Bersatu and PH) intend to defeat BN or, more specifically, try to avoid the court clusters from gaining power, it is going to be extremely difficult to come together,” he said.

He said if PH and Bersatu joined forces it may not sit well with their supporters.

Another stumbling block was consensus over who would be prime minister in the event Bersatu and PH managed to defeat BN in GE15.

“Unless they can resolve this issue, the so-called grand coalition won’t come to fruition,” Azmi said. - FMT