PAS must decide whether it will face the general election with Barisan Nasional (BN) or Perikatan Nasional (PN), Umno deputy president Mohamad Hasan said.

It would be more advantageous for the Islamist party to work with Umno and BN, he said..

“We want PAS with us, but that is not our decision to make. It is PAS who must decide,” he said at a press conference at the annual general assembly of the Umno Wanita, Pemuda and Puteri wings at the Putra World Trade Centre today.

PAS has made it clear that it wants to keep both its alliance with Umno in Muafakat Nasional and its membership in the PN coalition with Bersatu.

Umno, meanwhile, has declared that it will be withdrawing its support for PN when parliament is dissolved and that it will not be working with Bersatu in the elections.

Mohamad, who is Rantau assemblyman, said PAS would only be able to retain its Malay seats on the east coast it it worked with Umno and BN.

“It’s not a matter of fear… it is simply more beneficial for PAS to be with BN.

“PAS has a better chance of winning the Malay contests together with us.”

Mohamad said PAS and Umno would inevitably clash at the elections should the former decide to work with PN.

If that were to happen, he said the results would be unpredictable.

“If (PAS) is not (with) BN, we will face (each other) again and the outcome is uncertain,” he said.

He said it was not possible for Umno to get along with Bersatu even though PAS wanted them to reconcile.

Umno has had several disputes with Bersatu, including over the claim that its members were sidelined by the splinter party and that it was badly treated in the Sabah elections. – March 27, 2021.