PARTI Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) has stressed that their stance on the appointment of the Perikatan Nasional (PN) Chairman has not changed, namely that they will only accept candidates from among the presidents of the coalition's component parties.
Its Information Chief, Datuk Tun Faisal Ismail Aziz, said that this stance was decided at the Bersatu Supreme Leadership Council meeting on January 12, and it still remains.
"As far as I can see, Bersatu's stance made during the meeting on January 12, 2026, remains, namely, to only accept candidates for the PN Chairman from among the presidents of member parties. That has not changed, as have other decisions," he said in a statement.
Tun Faisal said this in response to a report that PAS had confirmed its intention to take over the PN Chairmanship from Bersatu with the approval of its President, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
PAS Deputy President Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man, who confirmed the matter, said that it had been agreed upon in a series of discussions between the party's top leadership and Muhyiddin and would be finalised in the PN Supreme Council meeting expected to be held at the end of this month.
The vacancy for the PN Chairmanship, which has yet to be filled, has raised questions about the future of the coalition.
The ongoing polemics have also 'derailed' PAS's efforts to name its candidate to replace the PN Chairman when the PN Supreme Council's extraordinary meeting scheduled for January 29 was cancelled.
Instead, Muhyiddin invited leaders of the coalition's main component parties, namely PAS, the Malaysian Indian People's Party (MIPP) and the Malaysian People's Movement Party (Gerakan), to meet at his residence on January 29.
However, PAS President Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang did not turn up for the meeting, thus sparking an increasing narrative of division. – February 6, 2026
