PAS perlu rakan kuat tawan Selangor, BN belum tentu mampu bantu

Over the weekend, Sanusi Nor suggested that PAS aims to make Selangor the starting point to challenge PH within the state and potentially nationwide during the 16th General Election. (Image by Bernama) PAP's ambition to wrest Selangor seems unlikely to materialize without strong support from its political allies, with analysts questioning the ability of the Barisan Nasional (BN) to fill the void left by Bersatu in helping the Perikatan Nasional (PN) achieve a strong performance in the 2023 PRN.

Azmi Hassan from the Nusantara Academy noted that the strength of PN in the election cannot be separated from the influence of Selangor Deputy Chief Minister Azmin Ali, synonymous with Selangor politics. According to him, the influence of the former Selangor Menteri Besar remains strong while PN nearly ousted the Pakatan Harapan (PH) government three years ago, even with a two-thirds majority, despite working with BN.

PAS may cooperate with BN, but its influence (BN) is somewhat limited in Selangor, he told FMT. He referred to BN's record of only winning two out of 12 contested seats in the Selangor PRN 2023. Moreover, his party's leader Megat Zulkarnain Omardin passed away in Gombak Setia. PH won 32 seats while PN secured 22 seats with 12 won by Bersatu and 10 by PAS.

The number of Bersatu seats subsequently dropped to 11 after Selat Klang Adun Abdul Rashid Asari supported the administration of Selangor Chief Minister Amirudin Shari in 2024. PAS decided to cooperate with Bersatu on June 8th, before forging an understanding with BN in the PRN of Negeri Sembilan earlier this month, a move that may be extended nationwide until the 16th General Election.

Last weekend, PN Chief Electoral Officer Sanusi Nor also stated that PAS wants Selangor as a starting point to challenge PH there and eventually in Putrajaya during the 16th General Election. Mazlan Ali from the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) also saw the absence of Bersatu as a challenge for PAS, as past cooperation between the two parties proved successful in PRN.

While PN won 22 seats, Mazlan said cooperation between PAS and BN in Selangor has not been tested, while Umno only won two seats - Dusun Tua and Sungai Air Tawar. The challenge of this cooperation is undoubtedly related to the distribution of seats and whether Umno's influence can boost PAS, he warned, highlighting the significant strength of Bersatu in Selangor that cannot be underestimated.

The breakup of PAS and Bersatu could push the party's leader to work harder to contain the rise of PAS.