Hadi, Muhyiddin still at odds despite 2 meetings, says source

 

Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin (right) and PAS president Hadi Awang met at the former prime minister’s residence in Kuala Lumpur on Feb 14. (Muhyiddin Yassin Facebook pic)

PETALING JAYA: The recent meeting between PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang and his Bersatu counterpart Muhyiddin Yassin failed to ease the friction between them, says a source familiar with the matter.

The source claimed that their face-to-face meeting at Muhyiddin’s residence on Feb 14, which was followed by a Perikatan Nasional (PN) meeting the next day, was just for show.

“The fact is that the problem has not been resolved,” the source told FMT, going on to reveal that several Bersatu leaders were playing up the meeting between the two PN leaders.

Muhyiddin is the PN chairman while Hadi is his deputy in the opposition coalition.

The source added, however, that the lukewarm relationship between Hadi and Muhyiddin has not affected support for PN.

“For voters, internal struggles are not something that has resulted in diminished support for PN.

“This is because there are other stronger factors which have made these voters to continue rejecting the unity government,” the source said.

This comes as FMT reported on Feb 1 that the relationship between the two leaders turned cold following Muhyiddin’s “U-turn” last November on defending his presidency at the Bersatu polls.

A source said this scuttled PAS’s plans to push its vice-president Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar as the opposition’s candidate for prime minister in the next general election.

The source said Muhyiddin’s about-turn at the Bersatu general assembly was seen as an attempt by the Pagoh MP to keep hold of the PN chairmanship in the hope of becoming the prime minister again.

The source added that Muhyiddin and Hadi had not been seen sharing the same stage since the PAS muktamar last October, while another source said Hadi had not attended any PN leadership meeting “for a long time”.

Meanwhile, Marzuki Mohamad, Muhyiddin’s former private secretary, dismissed the claims, stressing that Muhyiddin promoted Samsuri as a future prime minister when campaigning for him ahead of last year’s Kemaman parliamentary by-election.

On Nov 5, Muhyiddin was reported to have said PN wanted to field Samsuri in Kemaman to highlight the Terengganu menteri besar’s capabilities as a future prime ministerial candidate. He stated that this was a strategic move by the coalition to showcase its best leaders.

According to Marzuki, Hadi did not attend any PN meeting after the PAS muktamar as he was undergoing medical treatment.

PAS deputy president Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man has also moved to dismiss speculation of frosty ties between Muhyiddin and Hadi, stating that the two leaders are “very close”.

Speaking to FMT on Feb 2, he said there was no question over Muhyiddin’s position as PN’s prime minister candidate, quashing claims the Islamic party wanted to push Samsuri for the candidacy. - FMT