DR MAHATHIR Mohamad should not form a new party to challenge Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin for control of Putrajaya but should look at using civil society groups as an option to gain more support, said analysts.

They told The Malaysian Insight that another option for the former prime minister is to join a Pakatan Harapan party like DAP or seek to be a direct member of the coalition.

In a recent interview with a Hong Kong media agency, Dr Mahathir had said he may consider forming a new party.

He said his faction may be forced to run under a different name, or it could be a new political party but the situation was unstable at this stage.

However, in a separate interview with The Malaysian Insight, the former prime minister said he is still a Bersatu member, despite party president Muhyiddin sacking him and four others for sitting with the opposition in the first parliamentary sitting on May 18 of the Perikatan Nasional administration.

Dr Mahathir has embarked on the “Bersatu blackout” campaign to win over the party grassroots.

However, analysts said the better alternative is to operate through a platform of civil society groups, or through PH.

Prof Dr Mohd Azizuddin Mohd Sani of Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) said while Perikatan Nasional need not hold elections until 2023, Dr Mahathir will be caught out if he forms a new party and snap elections are called in the next six months.

“There is not enough time for Dr Mahathir to form a new party to contest in the general election, especially if snap polls are called,” he said.

“The key is time. Unless he wants to join another PH party, like DAP, or he directly becomes a member of PH without joining a party,” Azizuddin said.

If Dr Mahathir does start a new party, it would be similar to Bersatu or Umno, targeting Malay voters, said Azizuddin.

There is already a saturation of Malay parties – Umno, PAS, Amanah and Bersatu – but Malay voters still preferred Malay parties compared with their multiracial counterparts, he said.

“People cannot support only one type of political party, so it is a good thing to have another Malay party within PH.

“Even though it has Amanah, PH is still struggling to win over Malay voters.”

More important, said Azizuddin, is the kind of policies the new party will have.

“If he forms a new political party, he can still attract those who are loyal to him. There are still people who support him, but there is no platform to attract that support.

“He has no political party and he is not part of PH, so how will his supporters operate?”

Meanwhile, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia’s Dr Mazlan Ali said that it will be difficult for Dr Mahathir to start a new party if he wants to compete with Muhyiddin for control of Bersatu.

“How is Dr Mahathir going to fight for Bersatu if he starts anew?”

He emphasised that although Dr Mahathir has other options, he still needs to put forward his own principles first.

“If he forms a new party, then he has no reason to compete with Muhyiddin for control of Bersatu.”

Dr Mahathir and the other sacked MPs are now challenging their expulsion in court.

Bersatu, led by Muhyiddin, is now in the ruling pact with the support of Umno and PAS, along with Sarawak’s ruling GPS coalition, and Barisan Nasional parties MCA and MIC. – July 21, 2020.