PAS veep: Annuar welcomed to join, along with ‘others’

PAS is ready to welcome former Ketereh MP Annuar Musa or any politician without a party into its fold, said vice-president Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar.

In a report by Free Malaysia Today, Samsuri (above) was quoted as saying that the Islamist party would be delighted to have an eminent figure like Annuar, an Umno veteran and a former minister. 

“I believe that experienced people like Annuar and others have roles (that they can play) to strengthen PAS,” he told reporters after a breaking of fast event in Serdang, Selangor last night.  

Previously, Malaysiakini reported that Annuar is poised to join PAS to further his political career after the 15th general election. 

The former Umno secretary-general had filled out the PAS membership form and the announcement is expected to be made after Aidilfitri, according to sources.

Annuar was sacked from Umno last December after being removed from his position as BN secretary-general as he was perceived as “being too close to Bersatu”.

The former Ketereh MP was among those who wanted PAS and Umno to continue their alliance under Muafakat Nasional amidst deteriorating ties.

He was also critical of Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s leadership following the party’s poor showing in GE15.

‘There are others’

Meanwhile, Samsuri also revealed that other leaders who were disappointed with their party’s leadership would be joining PAS soon.

However, he refused to divulge further details.“God willing, there are (other leaders joining PAS) but I can’t reveal their names. It doesn't stop there,” he was quoted as saying by Berita Harian. 

In other developments, Samsuri, who is Terengganu menteri besar, said the state government had received a small advance of the annual “petroleum royalty” from the federal government a few days ago.

While he did not disclose the exact amount of the allocation, he said the Terengganu government is in the midst of discussing the matter with Putrajaya.

In February, Samsuri expressed hopes that the payment of a special federal government grant, which the federal government pays in lieu of royalty, would be continued by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s administration.

However, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reforms) Azalina Othman Said said both Kelantan and Terengganu do not qualify for a 5 percent royalty on petroleum because Petronas extracts crude oil beyond the three nautical mile limit. 

Deputy Finance Minister Ahmad Maslan recently revealed that “wang ehsan”, or goodwill payment, worth RM1.69 billion had been paid to Terengganu, while Kelantan received RM344.60 million in 2022.

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