PRN Melaka bukan kayu ukur kekuatan nasional, kata penganalisis

A political analyst has dismissed the idea of using Melaka as a yardstick to measure the strength of individual parties ahead of the 2016 general election. Azmi Hassan from the Nusantara Academy argued that the decision to hold separate contests in Melaka, which has only 28 parliamentary seats, does not necessarily reflect support for parties at the national level.

He also raised concerns about what the PRN results on November 14 might signify if voter turnout is low. Azmi suggested that making Melaka a yardstick for measuring the strength of parties is not realistic, especially when discussing the proposals of former High Committee member Puad Zarkashi. The ex-member of Umno's top advisory body said that main parties would face difficulties in reaching consensus and making progress on political cooperation for Melaka's PRN.

The Barisan Nasional had previously expressed a desire to work with Perikatan Nasional (PN) in Melaka, following their strong victory in the state election in September. However, the Umno leadership opened the door to talking to Pakatan Harapan (PH) and took time to confirm cooperation with PN leadership from PAS. PAS president Hadi Awang claimed that PAS and BN were already agreed to join forces in Melaka.

Meanwhile, PH is speculated to be considering a possible alliance with Bersatu, which is increasingly falling out of favor within the PN despite still being a component of the opposition coalition. Azmi further pointed out that the political landscape post-PRU15 has made cooperation between parties more important when no single party has enough support to form a fully independent federal government.

"No political party wants to take the risk of standing alone if there is a chance for cooperation to succeed," he said. Lau Zhe Wei from Universiti Islam Antarabangsa Malaysia also commented on the proposal of standing alone, stating that it may seem plausible theoretically but is difficult to implement in reality. He raised the question of whether a single contest truly reflects the will of the voters in a first-past-the-post system, where the candidate with the most votes wins.

He gave the example of voters who might support both Umno and PAS but are forced to choose one if they are contesting separately. This splitting of votes, he said, could open the way for candidates from other alliances to win the relevant seat. "Is that reflecting the wishes of the people? Not necessarily," he stated. Although a three-way contest between BN, PN, and PH could produce a less predictable outcome, he noted.