KUALA LUMPUR – Umno tried its utmost to save its Muafakat Nasional (MN) partnership with PAS for the sake of the ummah (Muslim fraternity), but PAS prioritised ensuring a greater share of seats for itself in the upcoming national polls over salvaging MN, said Umno youth leader Datuk Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki.
He revealed that in a recent meeting PAS had stressed to Umno that it had been promised 47 winnable seats if it cooperated with Bersatu in the Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition.
“This is just like in the previous Melaka election when Umno offered five winnable state assembly seats to PAS to contest while Bersatu offered 11 seats to the party,” he said in an Instagram post.
However, Umno views its negotiation to restrengthen MN as being bigger than just counting seats to be shared to face the 15th general election (GE15).
“As a party readying to battle, Umno will never be discouraged even if ‘madu dibalas tuba’ (our good deeds are only returned with pain).
“The struggle for religion, race, and our homeland is the basis on which we expand our efforts because Umno is confident that our lengthy record bears witness to our cooperation being based on urgency – not sincerity repaid with betrayal,” he added.
Asyraf shared a photograph of the eight-point meeting between Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, his deputy Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan, PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang, and deputy president Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man a day before the party decided to remain with Bersatu.
Asyraf also stated that the meeting was Umno’s last attempt to accept PAS in order to save MN, a coalition created during the 22 months the parties had been in the opposition.
“Even so, this was after being visited by a top PAS leader who brought the message that the PAS Syura Council and PAS muktamar had made a resolution to restore the relationship between PAS and Umno.
“The PAS Council of Scholars is also rumoured to have made a similar resolution,” he added.
“Umno is big-hearted enough to accept PAS back, despite being betrayed when PAS agreed to form the PN coalition with Bersatu,” he said.
On Wednesday, the PAS central working committee had made a decision to continue strengthening its cooperation within PN for GE15. Besides PAS, the other parties in PN are Bersatu and Gerakan.
Hadi said the decision to continue with PN was based on the principle of unifying the ummah.
According to him, the party also maintained its position to not dissolve the state legislatures of Kelantan, Terengganu, and Kedah.
Meanwhile, Zahid said that Umno will campaign solo with BN in GE15 as PAS still does not have a fixed principle and failed to meet three set conditions.
The three conditions were that PAS must leave PN, sever political ties with Bersatu, and officially announce that they are 100% “mufarakah” (separate) from the parties. – The Vibes, October 15, 2022
