PH, Bersatu seen as avoiding publicity for Melaka polls pact

Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Bersatu appear to prefer keeping their pact in the Melaka polls out of the limelight in a move an analyst has described as “strategic”.

Mazlan Ali of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia believes both PH and Bersatu want to avoid being openly associated with each other.

He attributed this to the strong opposition from the DAP, a PH component, to the partnership. The DAP leadership has made no secret about their objections to working with Bersatu.

“I believe PH and Bersatu share a tacit understanding (that they will work together), even if not formally announced. It appears to be a calculated move,” he told FMT.

Mazlan pointed to Bersatu’s current positive relations with PH chairman Anwar Ibrahim’s administration as evidence of that understanding.

On Oct 29, Bersatu president Muhiyiddin Yassin and five other MPs from the party signed a confidence and supply agreement with the government.

Among others, the party agreed to give the recently tabled Budget 2027 the nod, and to back Anwar’s government until the end of the current parliamentary term.

“PH and Bersatu need each other to counter the dominant ‘Malay-Muslim’ narrative championed by Umno and PAS,” he added, referring to the alliance forged by Barisan Nasional and Perikatan Nasional.

In the Nov 14 Melaka state election, PH is contesting 24 seats while Bersatu is vying for seven, with the two to clash in three seats. PH election director Amirudin Shari previously confirmed that an agreement had been reached with Bersatu.

However, Bersatu said PH has not spelled out the details about how its election machinery would support the party’s candidates in the Nov 14 polls.

PH has meanwhile refrained from instructing its members and supporters to back Bersatu in seats the coalition is not contesting.

Melaka PH chief Adly Zahari appeared to distance himself from the Bersatu pact, saying the party “has its own plans for the Melaka polls” while his focus was on PH.

Nevertheless, he previously acknowledged that multi-cornered contests, even those involving Bersatu, could improve PH’s chances of victory.

Universiti Sains Malaysia’s Ahmad Fauzi Abdul Hamid said Bersatu was already widely expected to move closer to PH after its fallout with PAS in June.

“There are influential personalities within Bersatu who were from PKR, such as Azmin Ali. He would likely have retained a modicum of support in PH,” he said.

Sheraton Move remains a sore issue

Fauzi believes the Sheraton Move was still a sore issue for PH and was the reason why the coalition has not ordered its machinery to directly support the campaign of Bersatu candidates.

“Giving direct instructions to PH voters to support Bersatu for this election would be too drastic a change, which will likely cause them to sit out the elections, thus giving away free seats to BN-PN.

“Bersatu will have understood that it’ll have to rely on its Malay nationalist instincts to outwit its BN-PN opponents. Leaving the field open for Bersatu to compete is good enough,” he said.

Nonetheless, Fauzi said this was likely to affect Bersatu’s chances in the four seats PH is not contesting, to the benefit of BN and PN.

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