PAS spiritual leader Nik Aziz Nik Mat today dismissed any possibility of the party sharing power with Umno and Barisan Nasional again.

He said the party had learnt a bitter lesson from its past association with the ruling coalition in 1973. The party made an acrimonious exit from the coalition two years later.

"There is no point in sharing power if there is no balance of power between the parties," he told reporters after opening PAS' annual general assembly in Kota Bharu, Kelantan.

Nik Aziz, who is also Kelantan menteri besar, said the party's struggle was not to gain power but to lead the people in accordance with the teachings in the Quran and that of Prophet Muhammad.

"We only want to give advice. But if it is not effective, then we will have to fight for power to rule and use this authority to change the situation (in accordance to the religious teachings)," he added.

Nik Aziz also described Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad's declaration last year that Malaysia was an Islamic state as "Umno's political game".

He stressed that this is why the party was against the declaration, which was proclaimed without considering any religious aspects based on the Quran or other Islamic teachings.

Hudud bill

Touching on opposition from various quarters on the proposed Syariah Criminal Enactment by the PAS-led Terengganu state government, Nik Aziz said the opposition was only on specific aspects of the law and not in its entirety.

"This means they actually accept the hudud bill and are only against section 9," he added.

Various women's groups and political parties have had opposed the bill, especially section 9 which covers the hudud and qisas (revenge crime restitution) provisions which were seen to be grossly unfair to women as it does not make any distinction between rape and zina (illicit sex).