‘Umno baiting PAS to destroy Pakatan’
By Fazy Sahir, Free Malaysia Today
PETALING JAYA: Umno is attempting to create fissures in Pakatan Rakyat by baiting PAS on the issue of cooperation, said an academic.
“This is one of Umno’s political tricks. Umno knows that if PAS takes the bait, it will die in seats which the party won on non-Malay support like in Kedah,” Abdul Aziz Bari told FMT.
“In other words, Umno is using PAS to cripple Pakatan because Pakatan is dependent on PAS,” he added.
According to him, Umno was profiting from these political polemics compared to PAS which is still obsessed with its “musuh dalam selimut” (enemy within) thinking.
Abdul Aziz said that Umno was using this to distract the people from the issues at hand, economy and corruption, which Pakatan is constantly raising.
He pointed out that it would be difficult for cooperation between the two parties to materialise because PAS spiritual leader Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat was against it.
But from Umno’s perspective, this issue was beneficial to them.
“This issue is capable of switching public attention away from the economy and corruption which are important to Pakatan. It’s worked well for Umno.
“Say what you want but Umno has won; just watching PAS scrambling to look for the enemy within says much,” added the International Islamic University law lecturer.
Abdul Aziz also agreed with PAS’ Shah Alam MP Khalid Samad that those who had met with Perak Mufti Harussani Zakaria should be sacked from the party.
“I think it is stupid if PAS follows Umno and I agree with Khalid that the leaders who met with Harussani should be sacked. These leaders have clearly gone against party interests,” he said.
