Bersatu will lose ground with foot-dragging over PN, says analyst

Bersatu cannot afford to continue dragging its feet over its future in Perikatan Nasional without risking further damage to its political standing and support among the grassroots, an analyst says.

Bersatu is taking too long to accept that PN no longer offers the party a viable political future, said Asrul Sani of the Asia Group.

PAS has cut ties with the party, and Wawasan has effectively assumed the role of the Islamic party’s preferred Malay nationalist partner.

“Bersatu should leave PN and build a future beyond the coalition,” Asrul said. “Staying risks further defections, weaker grassroots morale and continued uncertainty over seats and electoral cooperation, while PAS and Wawasan steadily absorb its political space.”

He was commenting on the defection of the Kangar Bersatu division committee, along with leaders of its youth and women’s wings and “90 branch chiefs” who left the party to join Wawasan.

The latest defections come a day after Padang Besar Bersatu deputy chief Ramzi Udi and 19 other party leaders and members announced their departure from the party, citing dissatisfaction with its leadership.

Asrul said the longer that Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin keeps the party tied to PN, the more the party appears stuck and unable to respond to a political landscape that has already moved on.

On the one hand, leaving would cost Bersatu the PN brand and access to PAS’s formidable grassroots machinery, exposing it to multi-cornered contests without an obvious partner.

On the other hand, leaving PN would allow Bersatu to define its own identity, explore new partnerships and concentrate on states and constituencies where it has a realistic chance of winning.

“Grassroots machinery takes years to develop and cannot be recreated just before an election. The risks of leaving are considerable, but the longer-term risk of remaining is political irrelevance,” he warned.

What is Muhyiddin’s game?

Asrul said that Muhyiddin could still have some cards up his sleeve that could disrupt PAS’s electoral plans, but PN should no longer be central to Bersatu’s strategy.

“Using those cards merely to frustrate PAS or Wawasan would consume valuable time and resources without creating a viable future for the party,” he said.

Asrul also said Bersatu cannot build its future simply by trying to out-do PAS or Umno on Malay affairs: both its rivals have deeper roots and clearer identities, and Bersatu could go only so far and further limit its appeal beyond Malay voters.

“Muhyiddin needs to offer a credible vision for the country, including on the economy, governance and Malaysia’s future,” he said, adding that leaving PN without a broader strategy would only alter Bersatu’s position without addressing its deeper issues of identity and purpose.

Azmi Hassan of Akademi Nusantara said Muhyiddin still has a score to settle, which is why Bersatu has not made a move to leave PN.

He suggested that Muhyiddin may be trying to show he still calls the shots in Bersatu and PN, even at the risk of wrecking the coalition.

“PAS’s actions so far suggest it no longer sees Bersatu as part of PN,” he said, pointing to Bersatu’s exclusion from PN-Barisan Nasional talks on seat negotiations for the Melaka state election.

Bersatu had also claimed that PAS had sidelined the party prior to the Negeri Sembilan state election by not inviting the party to attend PN meetings on seat negotiations.

Bersatu contested the Negeri Sembilan polls under its logo and lost all its 22 contests. PN won seven of the total 36 seats, while BN secured 18, with the two coalitions subsequently forming the state government.

Azmi said the Negeri Sembilan polls showed that the PN brand still carries considerable weight among voters. This would make it difficult for Bersatu to simply walk away from the coalition.

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