Former MCA vice-president Ti Lian Ker has criticised PAS deputy president Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man’s recent invitation for MCA and MIC to join Perikatan Nasional (PN), calling it a strategic blunder that could politically damage both Barisan Nasional (BN) component parties.
Ti argued that while the move may benefit PAS, it would further weaken MCA and MIC’s fragile political standing.
In a Facebook post on Monday, Ti said Chinese and Indian voters are unlikely to embrace PAS as long as the party insists on its Islamic legal agenda, which risks alienating non-Muslims with terms like kafir harbi and kafir zimmi.
He added the invitation would have been more appropriate if made by PN’s chairman Muhyiddin Yassin or Opposition Leader Hamzah Zainuddin, instead of by PAS alone.
Ti warned MCA and MIC could meet the same fate as DAP in the 1999 general election, when the party secured only 10 out of 193 seats due to miscalculating voter sentiment.
“What was chased might never be caught, and what is carried may be lost along the way,” he said, quoting a Malay proverb.
The PAS invitation came amid growing dissatisfaction within BN, particularly from MIC, with some state divisions reportedly mulling an exit due to lack of representation in government.
Ti suggested the intent behind the PAS move was questionable, saying if it is merely to “make up the numbers,” then it resembles the tactical tahaluf siyasi pact once struck between PAS and DAP.
He urged PAS to prove it is not a race-based party, but one rooted in justice and universal values, starting by supporting long-resisted democratic reforms such as local council elections.
“Especially when DAP has long painted PAS as seeking to run the country in a Taliban-style manner. The Chinese and Indian communities remain fearful of the so-called ‘green wave’ and the possibility of a PAS Prime Minister,” Ti said.
He stressed that any collaboration with MCA, MIC or other parties must be based on moderation, genuine democracy, meritocracy, competitiveness and pluralism, not just empty political promises.
About The Author
