Pemuda bimbang PAS-Umno kembali bertelagah, tuntut penyatuan ‘tak bermusim’

Afnan Hamimi Taib, the PAS Youths' chief, warned that uniting PAS and Umno should be built on the interests of the people and not solely rely on political factionalism. He emphasized that unity must remain consistent and not limited to the run-up to elections. "Unity cannot be seasonal. We cannot unite when we want to win, but then separate after securing victory," he stated during his address at the 67th Dewan Pemuda PAS Muktamar.

He cautioned against MN's past failure to prevent such a division from recurring, as MN had once witnessed PAS and Umno sitting together but eventually broke apart due to groups prioritizing their own interests. There were factions that caused the breakup to happen again, with selfish attitudes from anyone involved leading to further fragmentation.

Therefore, Afnan stressed, the existing unity cannot be seasonal; it must transcend all interests to truly be built. He pointed out that the country's political landscape is always changing, and what seemed impossible before might become possible with a willingness to find common ground, referring to the presence of Umno's leaders at the Muktamar.

He noted that it had never been imagined that they would receive guests from coalition partners or those who were at least the opposition's rivals today. He added that developments in Johor and Negeri Sembilan showed that cooperation between Malay-Islam parties was achievable. Afnan mentioned that in Johor, PAS President Hadi Awang signaled that PN supporters should vote for Umno candidates in non-contested seats, while in Negeri Sembilan, discussions could proceed without controversy.

He affirmed that Pemuda PAS needed to take responsibility for ensuring the seeds of unity sown continue to grow and bear fruit to maintain the relationship between PAS and Umno from falling apart once more. He reminded that the previous generation had laid the foundation and planted those seeds, and today, they were walking that path with unity firmly guided. This was their trust and responsibility.