Split over Muda may be PH’s undoing, says analyst

 

Muda applied to join Pakatan Harapan on Friday.

PETALING JAYA: The mixed reaction of Pakatan Harapan component parties about cooperation with Muda may turn off voters at the next general election, says an analyst.

Azmi Hassan of Akademi Nusantara said if DAP and Amanah decide to work with Muda and PKR doesn’t, voters may get the perception that PH parties are still divided.

“This will not look good because if the three allies in PH are not on the same page and are creating animosity, voters will be left pondering whether to even come out to vote,” he told FMT.

Azmi also said a strong and united PH was vital to garner the support of fence sitters, whose votes PH would need because its component parties have weaker grassroot support compared to Umno.

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Azmi Hassan.

On Tuesday, Muda president Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman declared his party’s intention to join PH, saying preliminary discussions had already begun. He added that the party was targeting no more than 15 seats since Muda planned to be part of PH.

On Thursday, DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook was reported to have welcomed the news and asked for the next PH presidential council meeting to discuss the matter. However, some PKR leaders did not seem to share Loke’s enthusiasm.

PKR deputy information chief Razeef Rakimin had called Muda a “liability” and advised PH leaders against letting the party join the coalition, citing insults and arrogant statements by its leaders at the state elections in Johor last year.

PKR vice-president Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, on Twitter, had called out “some PH leaders” for jumping the gun at negotiations with Muda before any decision was reached by the coalition’s presidential council.

Oh Ei Sun.

Political analyst Oh Ei Sun of the Singapore Institute of International Affairs said clashes between PKR and Muda could be expected over seat allocations for the elections.

“Muda’s electoral forte coincides with that of PKR, namely urban and suburban multiracial seats with Malay plurality (but not majority), so it is natural that they would clash over seats,” he told FMT.

The best strategy for Muda would be to not demand a significant number of seats from PKR, and accept the seats DAP was willing to spare.

He said there was not much overlap in voter support for Muda and Amanah as Amanah would target seats that were predominantly Malay-majority.

Jeniri Amir.

Council of Professors fellow Jeniri Amir said the question before PH was whether Muda would be accepted by voters.

He claimed that the youth party had won only a single seat in the Johor polls because of votes from PH supporters and because DAP and Amanah had made way for the party’s candidate.

However, PKR must learn to make compromises if PH was to stand a chance against not just BN but the other opposition blocs of Perikatan Nasional and Gerakan Tanah Air. - FMT