PAS appears to have lost confidence in Gerakan’s ability to attract non-Malay voters for Perikatan Nasional, and is now turning its attention to its own non-Muslim wing instead, according to an analyst.
Universiti Sains Malaysia’s Azmil Tayeb said Gerakan, a founding component of PN, had failed to deliver non-Malay support for the coalition — including among Indian voters, who have shown greater willingness to shift allegiance compared to Chinese voters.
“PAS would have noticed the trend of Indian voters, in particular, switching support from Pakatan Harapan to PN in several by-elections. And Gerakan is growing irrelevant in PN because it is incapable of competing with DAP, MCA, and MIC in attracting non-Malay voters,” he told FMT.
Analysts divided on the relevance of PAS’s non-Muslim wing
However, Syaza Shukri of International Islamic University Malaysia offered a more sceptical view, arguing that Gerakan was never relevant within PN to begin with — and that the relevance of PAS’s own non-Muslim wing remained equally unclear.
She saw the two as serving different functions, with the PAS non-Muslim wing acting more as an intermediary between the party’s clerical leadership and the non-Muslim community, rather than as a genuine electoral vehicle.
“Unlike the wing, Gerakan would not fully support PAS’s agenda as they are totally different parties. But is this PAS non-Muslim wing even relevant in the first place? Perhaps it will hold more relevance than Gerakan just because it bears the PAS name, which is far more prominent in PN,” she said.
The PAS non-Muslim wing held its first convention last weekend, following its formal incorporation into the Islamic party as an associate wing in September last year.
Its head, G. Balachandran, said PAS must leverage the wing to dispel fears about the party among non-Malay communities. He added that the wing should be built up not merely as a political support platform, but also as a bridge for national unity and greater interracial understanding.
Seat negotiations could prove thorny for PN ahead of elections
Syaza also warned that PN could face complications during seat negotiations for future elections, particularly when allocating mixed or non-Malay-majority constituencies.
She noted that both PAS and Bersatu have non-Malay associate wings, while PN’s other two components — Gerakan and the Malaysian Indian People’s Party — are themselves non-Malay-based parties. This means all four parties could end up vying for the same seats.
The more pressing question, she added, was not who contests those seats, but whether any of them could actually win.
PN has consistently struggled to win non-Malay support in elections, particularly among Chinese voters, who are widely seen as put off by what is perceived as PAS’s hardline stance.
