PKR should avoid mimicking PAS, says analyst

 Sunway University’s Wong Chin Huat says peddling the PAS like of race and religion will not only fail to attract nationalist voters but also drive away minority and liberal supporters.

Wong Chin Huat said PKR’s soul-searching over its recent electoral performance must also be accompanied by a deeper analysis of its shortcomings.

PETALING JAYA:

PKR risks becoming a “copycat” if it tries to emulate PAS’s race and religion narrative over offering voters a distinct political alternative, an analyst said.

“What it offers will just be an ‘imitation product’ (rather than something of its own creation),” political scientist Wong Chin Huat told FMT.

Wong Chin Huat.

Wong said that when PKR leaders reflect on their party and Pakatan Harapan’s recent electoral setbacks, they need to go beyond taking the same religious and nationalist positioning which has long defined PAS.

“If, after their soul-searching, PKR leaders still end up imitating PAS’s line as defender of religion and race, PKR will end up looking like it is peddling an imitation product,” he said.

“It will still fail to attract nationalist voters, while driving minority and liberal voters away. PKR certainly needs to reflect (on its position now), but that reflection requires deep analysis,” Wong added.

He was commenting on remarks by PKR Youth chief Kamil Munim on the importance of understanding current political developments and mastering issues that resonate with voters at the recent party congress.

Kamil cited a PAS leader’s call for Muslim voters to support the party in its campaign to take power so it could end gambling nationwide as an example of an issue that PKR needed to understand.

Ahmad Fauzi Abdul Hamid.

Universiti Sains Malaysia’s Ahmad Fauzi Abdul Hamid said PKR’s soul-searching and reform efforts should not be confined to its state leadership or party wings but must also involve the central leadership.

“(PKR president) Anwar Ibrahim needs to seriously think about leadership transition in preparation for his eventual departure.

“It would be quite strange if everything is seen as fine at the PKR central level, and only the state leadership and wings need to change,” he said.

Fauzi also urged Anwar to prioritise reforms that reach the grassroots instead of focusing too much on maintaining ties with component parties in the unity government for political survival.

He said Anwar should use the remainder of his time in office to strengthen his legacy as a reformist by delivering on policies that PKR had championed for decades. - FMT