New opposition pact desperate gamble by fringe parties - PKR MP

A PKR lawmaker has dismissed the new loose opposition coalition spearheaded by Perikatan Nasional as being an opportunistic and desperate gamble by fringe parties.

Sungai Petani MP Taufiq Johari also indicated that the coalition has nothing in common besides wanting to quarrel with the Madani administration.

"A closer look at its composition reveals that it is big brother PAS, little brother Bersatu and 10 other parties with little to no representation.

"This then raises the question of whether or not it is a real representative collaboration or a desperate gamble by parties who are on the fringe," he said.

Yesterday, PN chief Muhyiddin Yassin announced the formation of a 12-party loose coalition that consists of Bersatu, PAS, Gerakan, Malaysian Indian People’s Party (MIPP), Pejuang, Muda, Putra, Berjasa, PSM, Urimai, Malaysian Advancement Party (MAP), and the National Indian Muslim Alliance Party (Iman).

PSM, which was not present at the launch, later said it had not yet received a mandate to join the coalition.

The coalition aims to champion issues which they claim the Madani government has failed to resolve, including its reform pledges.

Of the coalition members, only three parties have seats in Parliament, namely PAS (43), Bersatu (25) and Muda (1).

Reversal of fortunes doubtful

Taufiq said he doubted that forming the coalition would reverse the fortunes of parties that have been losing their deposits.

Political sentiments have been changing quickly as of late.

In 2018, PAS only had 18 Parliament seats and Bersatu, 13 and made significant gains in 2022.

PN gained even more ground in the 2023 six-state elections, almost making a clean sweep in Kedah, where Taufiq is from, while making a significant dent in Pakatan Harapan's control over Selangor.

In that series of state elections, PSM and Muda failed to win any seats.

However, this is partly due to Malaysia's first-past-the-post election system, which disincentivises voters from voting for small parties, while allowing parties to win seats in multi-cornered fights without needing 50 percent support.

Taufiq himself won Sungai Petani in 2022 with just 38 percent of the votes.

In the most recent by-election in the country, Ayer Kuning, BN won the election for the Madani pact, but non-Malay voters showed a noticeable swing towards PSM amid disgruntlement towards the federal government.

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