DELEGATES at the PKR Youth assembly today launched an expected response against PAS for breaking ties with their party last month – but with a difference.

There was no rostrum-thumping vitriol, with most of the barbs against PAS couched in limericks. In fact, most of the speakers did not name the Islamist party, leaving it to the audience to catch the drift. A strange and understated response from the youth wing of a party that was savaged by the PAS leadership at its muktamar in Alor Star last month.

PKR party insiders said the restrained tone towards PAS was part of a strategy to attack the PAS leadership for deciding to break ties with PKR but keep open the channels of communication which they had built up for the past 10 years with the PAS grassroots.

“We want to criticise the leaders but we don’t want to alienate their ordinary members,” said one state-level PKR Youth leader.

“We know the ordinary PAS members are still friendly with us and they want to be with Pakatan Harapan. If we hit PAS too hard, the ordinary members will move away from us,” said the state leader who requested anonymity.

PAS cut ties with PKR after accusing the latter of abandoning it by working with the DAP and PAS-splinter party Amanah – both of which are now PAS’ enemies.

PAS has declared that it will contest 100 parliamentary seats in the national polls. This means it will likely contest against PKR and other parties in the Pakatan Harapan coalition as well as the ruling Barisan Nasional.

Federal Territory PKR Youth leader Hazrul Fahmi Ahmad is unfazed about the prospect of facing a former ally in the elections.

“We also know that ordinary PAS members do not agree with their leadership’s decision to cut ties. And they don’t like how PAS is now working even closer with Umno,” he said.

Multi-candidate fights have historically benefited the BN by splitting the votes going to opposition parties. Analysts have said PH needs to form electoral pacts with other parties so as to have
straight fights which will consolidate non-BN votes.

But PKR Youth leaders, such as Asrol Sani Abdul Razak of Penang, said such an assessment is not necessarily true any longer now that there is Amanah and Bersatu – a Malay-based party of prominent ex-Umno leaders.

Asrol Sani’s also believes that a significant number of PAS members who disagree with the direction Abdul Hadi Awang is taking them can be persuaded to vote for PH.

He also is confident that Bersatu will snare some traditional Umno supporters who are struggling with the rising cost of living and are upset with Prime Minister Najib Razak’s leadership.

“We think that this time, multi-cornered fights would not automatically benefit BN because we have allies that are going to capitalise on anger towards BN by their members,” said Asrol Sani, who
is Penang PKR Youth chief.

At the end of the day, Hazrul Fahmi said that PKR is betting that the ordinary PAS members can see for themselves that they and the current PAS leadership do not want the same thing – to defeat BN.

“PAS leaders can instruct their members to vote for the PAS candidate. But whether the ordinary PAS guy does that is anyone’s guess as ballots are secret.”

Yet, history and the tradition of PAS suggests that the rank and file never move against the direction or policies set by the leadership.

They may be upset with Hadi for pushing the party closer to Umno, but it will be tough for the grassroots to give their vote to a PH candidate when one of their own is also contesting for the same seat. – May 20, 2017