Conservative forces in PAS have for a long time  been planning to review the party's position in Pakatan Rakyat, a former vice-president, Ahmad Awang, says.

In a telephone interview yesterday, Ahmad told Malaysiakini that a such a motion was once slated to be discussed at the Dewan Ulama muktamar, but the then PAS spiritual leader, Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, intervened.

This prompted the drafters of the motion to reword it to "improving ties with Pakatan", he said.

"At the time, they didn't dare go through with it when Nik Aziz was still around.

"With Nik Aziz gone, it's a different story. Even I was kicked out (of the party leadership)," Ahmad ( photo ) said.

During the PAS muktamar over the weekend, the party passed a resolution urging its syura council and central committee to cut ties with the secularist DAP.

Although some PAS leaders said the matter was not final, observers point out that it is essentially fait accompli, because a similar resolution was passed by the Dewan Ulama, whose leaders dominate the syura council.

Ahmad, who unsuccessfully mounted a challenge for the PAS leadership against president Abdul Hadi Awang, said the Hadi’s supporters had given the party a bad name.

"Some non-Muslims are left wondering whether the fighting, quarreling and name-calling are part of Islamic teachings.

"This is terrible for our efforts to spread Islam," he said.

‘Conservatives hate DAP’

Ahmad said conservatives in PAS genuinely "hate" DAP and those who are not aligned to them.

"Those who disagree will have their loyalties questioned, be scorned and given weird nicknames," he said.

Regardless of the setbacks, Ahmad said, a meeting among those who were defeated in the PAS elections over the weekend is slated to be held next week.

"We are proposing that those who were marginalised or rejected come together to analyse what had happened. There is little to achieve by moving alone," he said.

Ahmad said he would continue to serve the party in whatever way possible and dismissed suggestions that he would be joining Persatuan Ummah Sejahtera (PasMa).

During the party elections over the weekend, Hadi and his backers completed a virtual clean sweep in the elections to the the central committee, PAS Youth and Dewan Muslimat.

The party elections also saw, for the first time, the PAS deputy president and three vice-presidents failing to defend their seats.