Amanah vice-president Mujahid Yusof Rawa has ticked off his former party colleague Iskandar Abdul Samad for saying Amanah should merge with DAP.

Mujahid said the message clearly showed that PAS wanted nothing to do with Amanah and DAP, but is willing to work with Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) and PKR in the next general election.

"It is unfortunate that such a statement has come at a time where the voters want to see a united opposition.

"This is not the time to unleash grudges among fellow opposition parties. Iskandar should instead have a big heart to identify the true enemy and focus on saving the nation," Mujahid told Malaysiakini.

Yesterday, Iskandar, who is a PAS vice-president, said Amanah, which splintered from the Islamist party, should merge with DAP to solve the opposition conundrum over seat allocations in the next general election.

He also claimed that Amanah's presence has "disrupted" the national political scene.

Is PAS willing to embrace the opposition?

Mujahid said if PAS was serious about going against Umno, the party should be willing to work with Pakatan Harapan.

The technicalities of how this would work out could be deliberated later, he added.

"PAS must be willing to embrace the opposition and join hands with us against Umno. Or, does it want to be a kingmaker after the election?" Mujahid asked.

The Parit Buntar MP was unfazed by PAS' rejection of Amanah and DAP, saying he was more concerned about whether an opposition bloc that includes PAS can show voters an example that a united opposition can win the election.

"Clearly, Iskandar's statement does not help. But for me, the door is always open and let's talk about a strong united opposition to fight BN."

Propaganda to frighten Malays

Meanwhile, Amanah vice-deputy chief Faiz Fadzil claimed the proposal for his party to merge with DAP was meant to play up racial issues.

"This propaganda is intended to frighten the Malays even though there is no basis to this," he said, noting that DAP had often been vilified as a chauvinist party.

"The main struggle for the people today is to save the country from corruption and kleptocracy.

"The attitude of making enemies out of DAP and Amanah is only to the people's detriment as they need a strong and united opposition to topple Umno and BN in the 14th general election," he said.

He said that this stance, coupled with PAS adopting a similar tone to Umno, would only cause it to be a spoiler to the people's aspiration.

He added PAS' desire to be a kingmaker in the general election showed it was not committed to take down Umno and BN.