THIS was Dr Mahathir Mohamad trying to put his best foot forward, refusing to accept that PAS had broken the back of Pakatan Harapan (PH) by announcing that it was going it alone in the coming general election.

Yes, PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang’s decision to snub PH’s overtures would hurt and result in three-cornered fights‎ that could ensure an easy victory for Barisan Nasional (BN), but Dr Mahathir understood that he needed to play the role of cheerleader.

Even without PAS, Pakatan Harapan could snare Malay votes, he said gamely.

“If we look at the number of Malays attending PH gatherings, the number can reach up to between 12,000 and 15,000.

“We also saw that most of these Malays who came in big numbers were Umno members. It showed that even Umno people were interested in us. That’s why we are confident we will win,” said Dr Mahathir.

At the press conference attended by Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) president Muhyiddin Yassin, PKR president Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and DAP vice-chairman Teresa Kok, Dr Mahathir also aimed some barbs at PAS.‎

Hadi had said at the party’s annual general assembly ‎that PAS would contest the election as part of a third pact, called Gagasan Sejahtera.‎

Dr Mahathir called it the way he saw it.

“It is like helping BN. In other words, they are siding with BN, ” he said.

Meanwhile, the parties in PH are prepared to contest as individual parties in the coming elections if the Registrar of Societies (ROS) rejected their application to register the opposition coalition.
 
“We will contest as individual parties with one manifesto if ROS rejects our application,” said Dr Wan Azizah today
 
She said the voters were smart and would not be confused if the opposition parties did not contest under one logo. – April 30, 2017.