PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang today said his party can stand alone without the need to form a coalition with the opposition force.

"We have been alone for a long time," he said when asked if PAS, which has decided not to join Pakatan Harapan, can stand alone.

“We feel that many parties have depended on us all this while," he said, adding: "This has been our strength. We have strong grassroots and branches.”

Speaking at a press conference at the Parliament lobby, he also said PAS would not be joining any political cooperation framework that was not based on Islamic principles.

"This is because we will not take an express bus that will not reach the destination," he said.

Asked later for his response, Abdul Khalid Samad (Amanah-Shah Alam) [photo] said Hadi was right to say PAS needed nobody in the context of Kelantan and Terengganu but not on the national political front.

"This may be true for Kelantan and Terengganu," he said. "But when it comes to the national front, it is not quite right for PAS to declare that it does not need anybody," he said.

The former PAS leader said PAS only emerged on the national front through Barisan Alternative and with Pakatan Rakyat through the Reformasi campaign, he said.

"If they want to go back to only Kelantan and Terengganu, it's up to them," he said.