Delegates show they wield power
With Pas' new line-up in place, Parti Keadilan Rakyat and DAP, the other two components of Pakatan Rakyat, cannot take for granted that Pas won't again enter into "unity talks" with Umno if the next general election results are close.
ZUBAIDAH ABU BAKAR, NST
Delegates who preferred the Hadi-Nasharuddin leadership sent a strong signal to federal opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim that he could not expect Pas to follow him blindly.
The delegates' choice of the Hadi-Nasharuddin team showed that the ulama are still powerful in the Islamist party and whose advice will be sought after in charting the party's future.
It is also clear that the failure of Datuk Husam Musa, the leader of reformists in Pas who are pro-Anwar and pro-Pakatan Rakyat, to win the deputy presidency means that Pas does not want to change too quickly.
Delegates believe that incumbent deputy president Nasharuddin Mat Isa, despite being a "bourgeois" among Pas leaders, would represent the party's interests better than Husam and the other contender Mohamad Sabu.
With Pas' new line-up in place, Parti Keadilan Rakyat and DAP, the other two components of Pakatan Rakyat, cannot take for granted that Pas won't again enter into "unity talks" with Umno if the next general election results are close.
Some analysts see that the Hadi-Nasharuddin team now has a mandate to do what it wants in terms of talking to Umno, even if Pas may have been aiming to replace Umno as the main party for Malays.
Nasharuddin, fresh from retaining his post for the third time, defended party president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang, who has been criticised for pushing for unity talks.
He vowed that Pas would not close its doors to Umno and reiterated his stand that any talk with the latter was never conducted with the intention of working together.
This creates uneasiness among Pas' allies in Pakatan. Husam is now banking on Erdogans, the tag given to reformists in his group, to continue preventing Pas from working with Umno.
How the controversy over the Pas-Umno unity talks will develop will depend on the direction taken by the new office-bearers.
Another contention that interests observers and the public is whether Husam's defeat will see a slowdown in Pas' efforts to moderate its views.
Those who believe Pas would revert to its conservative ways argue that the voice of the reformists would be weaker, although 10 leaders from the reformists group now sit in the 18-member central committee.
This could be true since the top two party posts are being held by the ulama faction and the reformists have no representation in the influential majlis syura ulama.
Then again, the fact that delegates had opted for a somewhat "balanced" representation from the ulama and reformists groups could be interpreted that Pas listened to concerns about the need to keep abreast with the needs of the Malaysian electorate.
And the reason they chose to maintain the status quo of the 2007 and 2005 party elections, that is, having an equal representation from both groups, reaffirms the party's desire to execute change, albeit with reservations.
Delegates want the conservatives (read ulama) and reformists (professionals) to continue complementing each other in pursuing Pas' dream of becoming the dominant opposition party after the next general election, scheduled before 2013.
Professor James Chin of Monash University, Malaysia, said: "This was a clear victory for the conservatives although you can argue that if Mohamad Sabu did not stand, the results could have gone either way."
What is certain is Pas members, standing close to one million and comprising a cross section of the Muslim population, will not allow anyone, whether an outsider or from among them, to belittle the role of the ulama.
The influence of the ulama in Pas and the pivotal roles played by many ulama in charting the party's political journey from its inception in 1951 to now are undeniable.
2009-2011 leadership
President
– Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang (won uncontested)
Deputy President
– Nasharuddin Mat Isa (480 votes)
Vice-Presidents
– Datuk Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man (871 votes)
– Salahuddin Ayub (824)
– Datuk Mahfuz Omar (636)
Party central working committee (18 seats)
– Datuk Seri Mohamad Nizar Jamaluddin
– Idris Ahmad
– Datuk Kamaruddin Jaafar
– Datuk Seri Azizan Abdul Razak
– Datuk Dr Hassan Ali
– Dr Mohd Hatta Mohd Ramli
– Abdul Gani Samsuddin
– Datuk Abu Bakar Che
– Hanipa Maidin
– Datuk Amirruddin Hamzah
– Datuk Lo' Lo' Mohd Ghazali
– Abdul Ghani Abdul Rahman
– Dr Dzulkifli Ahmad
– Dr Syed Azman Syed Nawawi
– Hashim Jasin
– Mazlan Ali Man
– Taib Azamuddeen Taib
– Dr Mujahid Yusuf Rawa
