Forming a new party is never an easy thing to do, but forming a splinter party is even more difficult - the annals of splinter parties in Malaysia is littered with political debris.
Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah's Semangat 46 only lasted eight years before rejoining Umno while PAS’s breakaways Berjasa and Hamim have faded to obscurity.
As such, PAS' New Hope (Harapan Baru) secretary Dzulkefly Ahmad ( photo ) told Malaysiakini it might be easier for the party's progressive leaders defeated in the muktamar earlier this month to join either PKR or DAP.
"Joining DAP or PKR seems to be the 'easiest' option. There's no headache or teething problems of a start-up party. Starting a party could be nightmarish," he conceded.
New Hope, also known as the G18, currently fashions itself as a movement.
However, making the leap from political movement to political party would depend on feedback from the grassroots.
"If they demand a replacement for the current PAS and want an inclusive, engaging, Islamist democratic party in a coalition with DAP and PKR, then we can't en bloc divide ourselves and join either party," he stressed.
Dzulkefly said this when asked why more PAS progressives are mulling a new party instead of jumping ship, as was done by former PAS Youth activist Sheikh Omar Ali, who joined DAP , following PAS delegates’ rejection of professional leaders in this year's muktamar.
Not about individuals but ideology
Kuala Krai MP Hatta Ramli, when posed the same question, simply said the attempt is not out to save personalities.
"We are not looking for a platform for our individual survival but one can't stop others from making individual choices," he told Malaysiakini .
Former PAS legal bureau chief Hanipa Maidin meanwhile said joining either PKR or DAP may not be popular for PAS members due to ideological differences.
"Maybe they can't join because they feel that they don't have the same ideology.
"Different people have different motivations. They may work with DAP, PKR but they don't subscribe to their ideologies, for example," he said.
However, he said it was still too early to speculate what would happen or if the progressives would go through with plans to set up a new party.
Political analyst Wan Saiful Wan Jan ( photo ) concurred with Hanipa.
He said it would be a messy situation if PAS progressives join PKR or DAP.
"They would not fit in the bigger picture of the two parties and they would also disrupt the dynamic of these two parties because suddenly, you have 18 people who immediately need positions at a national level," he told Malaysiakini .
Platform for hope
In order to survive, Wan Saiful said the new party mulled by PAS progressives must not simply be a derivative entity.
"If they define themselves as a splinter or protest party, then their struggle is not going to last for long. But if they bring new hope, aspirations, then the likelihood is they will be more sustainable in the long term," he said.
While details are sketchy , the new Islamist party in the works aims to be an inclusive one, open to members of all faiths, and aims to uphold justice and fight corruption.
The prospect of an Islamic party open to all, reminiscent of the forgotten slogan ‘PAS for all’, has caused a stir among the public.
However, this idea seems to appeal more to non-Muslim opposition supporters who seem excited about the potential of such vehicle.
Penang Institute fellow Wong Chin Huat ( photo ) said this is because there is recognition that the Islamist vote bloc is needed to change the government,
"The non-Muslims want to see the Islamist voters on board in the new (opposition) coalition. However, they don't trust PAS (anymore) so they want to substitute PAS (with this new party)," he said.
The political scientist added that Malay Muslims are lukewarm to this idea as they fear it would split the Malay vote further, creating more competition, which he said, the Malays are not accustomed to.
