INTERVIEW | Ever since Bersatu lost its grip on the prime minister’s post, voters have been questioning the strength of the party. These questions have escalated since Ampang MP Zuraida Kamaruddin left the party to join Parti Bangsa Malaysia (PBM) in May 2022.
Bersatu also lost former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Muar MP Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman as a result of the infamous Sheraton Move in 2020 - both of who moved on to start their own parties - Pejuang and Muda respectively.
While the party may have figures such as party president Muhyiddin Yassin and Gombak MP Azmin Ali to peddle their machinery, Bersatu is currently dealing with multiple blows, especially from the recent state elections, and with so many big names exiting, questions arise as to whether they are capable of standing on their own two feet.
There are questions surrounding Muhyiddin’s credibility and health, with assumptions that he is unable to deliver on the expectations of his party members, causing them to leave for better opportunities.
Despite the exit of several leaders to start their own political projects, Negeri Sembilan Bersatu Youth leader Danni Rais clarified that there is “no animosity with the splinter parties”.
“Muhyiddin said, ‘Well, go on. Wish you all the best. We’re still going to be here if you want to work together again’.
“It’s not like how Umno treats their splinter parties, which are considered enemies of the state. That is just how Umno is,” Danni said.
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According to Danni, the party remains “cordial” with those who’ve left.
“This is what new politics is. We have differences in viewpoints. The way we can move forward is over a cup of coffee and from there, we can learn and grow. That is how it should be.
“Bersatu is happy that we have so many offshoots, albeit illegitimate babies - Pejuang, Muda, and PBM - but there is no animosity against them,” he said, adding that the same could not be said for the “old guards” in Umno.
“It’s really like, ‘You are the enemy’. But there are the brighter young sparks in Umno that are a bit more open in their views so there is hope in every party.
“Despite the breakaways, the party is still intact. The machinery is still functioning and everyone seems to know what they need to do at the same time,” said Danni, who is the son of Bersatu politician Rais Yatim.
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Zuraida’s departure
On the departure of Zuraida from the party, Bersatu Youth exco member Harris Idaham Rashid - who had worked closely with the now-PBM president as her former special functions officer - said that the party was ultimately unaffected by the move.
“Muhyiddin tried to convince Zuraida to stay but that was unsuccessful because she decided to start her own political party called PBM.
“At that moment, it was not something significant as PBM did not attract Bersatu grassroots leaders, merely followers. These followers are from PKR who followed her to Bersatu, then to PBM,” Harris said.
He noted that among the 10 MPs that led the Sheraton Move, only two joined PBM.
“Although it was a sad loss for us because Zuraida is one of the good politicians we have in this country, Muhyiddin did not show any disappointment. We weren’t affected by her departure,” he added.
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In an exclusive interview with Malaysiakini, members of Bersatu’s youth wing were eager to clear up any confusion surrounding the party and indicated that they are beyond treating their opponents like enemies.
Here, Harris and Danni express their own words:
What do you think of Mahathir’s Pejuang and Gerakan Tanah Air?
Harris: Mahathir is such a structured person. He needs a vehicle, he needs a coalition. He thinks he can only make a difference with a coalition - it might be small because he’s trying to find a small niche. “My party might not be big, my coalition might not be powerful, but I am still a PM candidate”. He needs this vehicle to keep his hopes alive.
People who were from Bersatu and are now part of Gerakan Tanah Air (GTA)... I don’t see how Pejuang can garner fresh voters because everybody is saying the party is just another vehicle for Mahathir to make (his son) Mukhriz (Mahathir) the next prime minister, just like how he wanted since his Umno days.
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When Umno didn’t work out for him, he still wanted to leave something for Mukhriz because he knows Mukhriz can’t do it by himself. Mukhriz needs the surname, hence that’s why Pejuang is named that way.
How will Bersatu fight the party image tied to the Sheraton Move?
Harris: Bersatu has to remain relevant to our targeted group and our relevance to our target group during the Pakatan Harapan era was decreasing due to the number of racial issues that were sparking.
But (the) Sheraton (Move) wasn’t just Bersatu, it had also the PKR quitters. They had issues that couldn’t be resolved with Anwar Ibrahim.
They have decided that enough is enough. “We have tried, we have stayed, we were part of Reformasi 98 and certain things just don’t work anymore. You cannot keep old milk in the fridge for so long,” and they decided to leave PKR.
Bersatu now doesn’t want to look into history, we want to look ahead.
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The government that was set up post-Sheraton was a sound government. That government brought us out from the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. That government achieved a very convincing vaccination rate, a respectable number in the world.
That government had senior ministers who had experience in leading the country and took care of us during Covid-19. I’m not too sure how inexperienced ministers would do the job because it was unprecedented.
It’s very tough and it requires experience and we brought those experiences. That government came into power in February 2020. In March, the most testing time started and Muhyiddin did all the hard work, until the recovery period where Ismail Sabri Yaakob continued (with Muhyiddin’s work). So, as far as performance is concerned, I think we managed to set up a sound government with some numbers, and it’s unprecedented. That is our main selling point.
We know that we will struggle with our image because Sheraton took place and we will be affected by it. But what happened after Sheraton, we got to where we are today because of the new government then, and it’s due to people like Khairy Jamaluddin (then science, technology, and innovation minister), who is one of the best ministers we had as far as policies were concerned. The new government was given the chance to lead during the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent vaccination.
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The world was talking about Health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, the world was talking about Khairy, and the world was talking about Malaysia’s vaccination rate. So the focus is more on post-Sheraton.
What do you make of Syed Saddiq’s move to Muda?
Harris: Muda’s maiden state election was pretty sound for a new party, they did quite well. However, whether Muda itself can be relevant over a period of time, like how Umno and PAS have proven to be, remains to be seen.
We have seven million new voters that come from two categories; Undi18 voters and automatic registration. Only 16 percent of the new voters are young ones, which is not really a big target group if I’m being honest. Even that percentage is divided into different political parties because it depends on who the person supports.
I’m just wondering if that is Muda’s target pool alone, and if Muda can’t break into the other groups, such as women and senior citizens... I don’t see how the party is going to grow big. They can probably survive but I don’t really know how they’re going to grow. That is my concern about the format of Muda.
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Muda is filled with young, educated people and not many of them have political backgrounds, so I think their setup is very interesting. Very new and fresh.
It’s a very relaxed party that welcomes those who don’t want to be in a structured environment. It’s a big experiment for Malaysian politics. We shall see what’s going to happen to that.
To add another point, Harapan announced that Muda will not be a component party for the coalition. It’s quite surprising because if Harapan reckoned Muda is a serious force, they would be the first ones to include Muda as part of the coalition.
Danni: Essentially, Harapan said, “We’ll use you when it is advantageous for us, but we’ll keep you at arm’s length”.
We’re not saying this to criticise. I think Syed Saddiq has done an amazing job to rile up support. Starting a new party itself is not easy. Fair play that he’s championing youth rights.
But in terms of party structure, it seems like they are very much set. Like, sometimes you can see it on social media, Subang Jaya might be doing something completely different from another place. It’s not a concerted effort.
I think this election will be a huge test for them. Sometimes, you need to throw a little pebble into still water to see how big the waves grow. - Mkini
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