Bersatu cannot afford to continue delaying a decision over its future in Perikatan Nasional (PN) without risking further damage to its political standing and grassroots support, an analyst said.
Asrul Sani of the Asia Group said Bersatu was taking too long to accept that PN no longer offered the party a viable political future.
PAS has cut ties with Bersatu, while Wawasan has effectively assumed the role of the Islamic party’s preferred Malay nationalist partner.
“Bersatu should leave PN and build a future beyond the coalition,” Asrul said.
“Staying risks further defections, weaker grassroots morale and continued uncertainty over seats and electoral cooperation, while PAS and Wawasan steadily absorb its political space.”
He was commenting on the defection of the Kangar Bersatu division committee, along with leaders of its youth and women’s wings and 90 branch chiefs, who left the party to join Wawasan.
More defections add pressure on Bersatu
The latest defections came a day after Padang Besar Bersatu deputy chief Ramzi Udi and 19 other party leaders and members announced their departure, citing dissatisfaction with the party’s leadership.
Asrul said the longer Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin kept the party tied to PN, the more it appeared stuck and unable to respond to a political landscape that had already moved on.
On one hand, leaving PN would cost Bersatu the coalition’s brand and access to PAS’s formidable grassroots machinery, exposing it to multi-cornered contests without an obvious partner.
On the other hand, leaving PN would allow Bersatu to define its own identity, explore new partnerships and concentrate on states and constituencies where it had a realistic chance of winning.
“Grassroots machinery takes years to develop and cannot be recreated just before an election. The risks of leaving are considerable, but the longer-term risk of remaining is political irrelevance,” he warned.
What is Muhyiddin’s strategy?
Asrul said Muhyiddin could still have some cards up his sleeve that could disrupt PAS’s electoral plans, but PN should no longer be central to Bersatu’s strategy.
“Using those cards merely to frustrate PAS or Wawasan would consume valuable time and resources without creating a viable future for the party,” he said.
Asrul also said Bersatu could not build its future simply by trying to outdo PAS or Umno on Malay affairs.
Both its rivals have deeper roots and clearer identities, he said, meaning Bersatu could only go so far while further limiting its appeal beyond Malay voters.
“Muhyiddin needs to offer a credible vision for the country, including on the economy, governance and Malaysia’s future,” he said.
He added that leaving PN without a broader strategy would only alter Bersatu’s position without addressing its deeper issues of identity and purpose.
PN brand still carries weight
Azmi Hassan of Akademi Nusantara said Muhyiddin still had a score to settle, which was why Bersatu had not moved to leave PN.
He suggested that Muhyiddin might be trying to show that he still called the shots in Bersatu and PN, even at the risk of damaging the coalition.
“PAS’s actions so far suggest it no longer sees Bersatu as part of PN,” he said, pointing to Bersatu’s exclusion from PN-Barisan Nasional talks on seat negotiations for the Melaka state election.
Bersatu had also claimed that PAS sidelined the party ahead of the Negeri Sembilan state election by not inviting it to PN meetings on seat negotiations.
Bersatu contested the Negeri Sembilan polls under its own logo and lost all 22 seats it contested. PN won seven of the 36 seats, while BN secured 18, with the two coalitions subsequently forming the state government.
Azmi said the Negeri Sembilan polls showed that the PN brand still carried considerable weight among voters.
This, he said, would make it difficult for Bersatu to simply walk away from the coalition.
