Syed Ali: 'Opportunistic' PAS impeding Muslim unity
An Umno division leader has decried what he says is an impetuous move by the PAS syura council to refuse closer cooperation with the ruling party, warning that it will impede the unification of Muslim ummah in the country.
"Today, it is clear to all the Malays in the country that PAS will not work with Umno... they are too opportunistic and are only pursuing (a narrow) political agenda," Cheras Umno chief Syed Ali Alhabshee was quoted as saying on his division's blog.
Syed Ali was commenting on the syura council's announcement today that PAS will not join Umno nor be a part of the BN ruling coalition.
He said it was sad that PAS refused the sincere hand of friendship offered by Umno president Najib Abdul Razak during his presidential address at the recently-concluded Umno general assembly.
This, said Syed Ali, was against PAS stated principle of supposedly fighting for Islam.
He said he hoped the Islamic party would reconsider its decision as Umno was sincere in wanting their cooperation to ensure unity among Malay-Muslims.
He also said the syura council should have conducted informal dialogues with Umno first before coming to their decision which he claimed could be detrimental to Malay political interests.
Syed Ali said while he respects PAS' stand, Umno was not so desperate that it needed to beg the Islamic party for cooperation.
He said Umno already represented the majority of Malays and was in a good enough position to form a dynamic government via BN.
"It is clear that they (PAS) do not have the vision to work towards Muslim unity for the betterment of the Malays," he said.
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