DAP has challenged its Pakatan Rakyat partner PAS to go ahead and leave the coalition and form a government with Umno.

DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng said PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang is now increasingly behaving like an "Umno leader", by playing racial sentiments and attacking DAP.

"The longer I look at him, the more he seems to be like an Umno leader. He said before he wants to form a unity government with Umno and BN.

"Now he attacks us. Is this his effort to seek an excuse to fulfil his wish for a unity government?

"If he wants to be with Umno, he can go ahead, but don’t talk nonsense, and don’t make false and malicious accusations,” Lim ( photo ) said at a press conference today.

Lim, who is also Penang chief minister, said this after delivering a keynote address at the launch of a forum on “Private Higher Education: Avoiding a Hidden Crisis” in Kuala Lumpur.

He said Hadi has run out of ideas on how to join forces with Umno, which was why he is now attacking DAP along racial lines as a ploy.

"Since when did we ever say (we want to rule the country by ourselves?)," he asked.

Lim added from Hadi's behaviour during the Permatang Pauh by-election, it was clear the PAS president had no desire to remain in the opposition coalition.

"It is clear his heart is no longer with Pakatan," he said.

"If he wants to be with Umno and BN, do it openly. Do it bravely.

"Don't use such dirty tactics to attack DAP by playing on racial sentiments."

'Only MP portfolios'

Yesterday, Astro Awani reported that Hadi is ready to sever ties with his party’s Pakatan partners over the shadow cabinet issue.

Hadi also called DAP arrogant and its plan "unrealistic", arguing that a shadow cabinet has to consider various issues in the Federal Constitution and not just be set up to benefit a specific group.

Lim hit back at Hadi, saying that DAP merely assigned 37 of its MPs to be spokespersons on issues concerning the various ministerial portfolios.

He said the DAP parliamentarians were from all races and have been well rehearsed on their roles according to their assigned portfolios, unlike PAS, which only has Malay MPs.

"This is so that we can fulfil our responsibilities to the people as parliamentarians and to debate constructively on a topic.

Lim pointed out he himself has no portfolio, and said whenever he is asked, he is not even named as shadow prime minister.

"For the shadow prime minister, you have to ask the opposition leader," he said.

The party secretary-general said his position has been reported before in the media but "Hadi just wants to play up racial sentiments".

“If Hadi wants to point fingers, he must remember that for every finger he points, four fingers are pointed back at him,” Lim added.