Time for PAS to take over opposition leader role, says Puad

Former Umno leader Puad Zarkashi has suggested that PAS assume the role of the opposition leader, stating that current opposition leader Hamzah Zainudin of Wawasan is unimpressive during the budget debate. Puad criticized Hamzah for not proposing new policies or mentioning an economic engine that would benefit the nation if PAS and Wawasan were to come to power. Hamzah did not specify what economic engine PAS and Wawasan would bring if they were to govern.

In a Facebook post, Puad called for PAS to take over the opposition leader position and introduce its own candidate, implying that Hamzah is being kept in the position for now to retain support from Wawasan while bolstering PAS' position. Puad alleged that PAS maintains Hamzah to keep Wawasan's backing while securing support for the Islamic party, with the ultimate goal of surpassing Umno's dominance.

The opposition also failed to present an alternative budget, unlike Rafizi Ramli's Bersama party, which unveiled a "shadow budget" last week. However, Puad criticized Rafizi for not raising the party's budget in Parliament since he and other Bersama leaders had resigned as MPs. Rafizi is irresponsible, Puad argued, because he resigned due to his fear of the anti-hopping law and a RM10 million party bond as a PKR MP.

Hamzah Zainudin has been serving as the opposition leader since December 2022, although he temporarily stepped down from April to June following his sacking by Bersatu. Prior to Hamzah assuming the opposition leader role in June, PAS vice-president Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar, who is also the Perikatan Nasional chairman, held the position.