To some Umno people, better Anwar than Muhyiddin
However, there are some in Umno who would rather see the party lose GE15 and allow Anwar Ibrahim to become PM9 rather than allow Bersatu to be the big brother. They want Umno to be the taiko and Bersatu to be just the machai. If Bersatu is the taiko and Umno is reduced to a machai, then they would rather lose GE15 and allow Pakatan Harapan to take over.
NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin
This was what Malay Mail Online wrote today:
Umno’s ceasefire with Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) in Perak is so it can demand better seats at the next general election, sources said.
They told Malay Mail that with the 15th General Election likely to be held in the first half of next year, Umno wants the most and best seats so its leaders have a better chance to helm the next government.
“The consensus is to make Umno the biggest party to win the most seats again in the next general election,” said a source from the party.
“Three-corner fights are not good for anyone… and with Bersatu and PAS, the Malay votes will be split three ways,” the source added.
Another source said that it is more beneficial for Umno to collaborate with Bersatu and PAS in order to appease and safeguard its more conservative voters.
“If Umno collaborates with DAP, it might turn away some of these voters. This will make a difference going into GE15,” said the source who is close to Bersatu.
KSI Strategic Institute political analyst Prof Hoo Ke Ping agrees with the assessment, adding that leaving Muafakat Sejahtera, an NGO which was forged last year with PAS, will be hazardous to Umno.
“Umno realises that it cannot abandon its coalition with Bersatu and PAS, especially PAS as the Islamist party is the kingmaker. With all parties reconciling, it is the best way forward for all, especially Umno, who without PAS could end up with the same or worse result they faced in 2018,” Hoo told Malay Mail. (READ MORE HERE)
In the 2018 general election, Barisan Nasional won 79 parliament seats, 54 of them which were won by Umno. Pakatan Harapan, on the other hand, won 113 seats while PAS won 18 seats.
In terms of popular votes, Pakatan Harapan garnered 5.5 million votes versus Barisan Nasional and PAS combined who garnered 6.1 million votes.
Hence Pakatan Harapan, with only 5.5 million votes, versus 6.5 million who DID NOT vote for them, did not really receive the peoples’ mandate as they claim.
You may argue that it is seats and not votes that decide the peoples’ mandate. Well, in the 2013 general election before that, was it not Anwar Ibrahim who claimed that they received more votes and that it is popular votes and not seats that count?
In 2013 it is votes that decide the peoples’ mandate and in the 2018 general election it is seats that decide the peoples’ mandate. Anwar has to decide which one it is. He keeps moving the goalpost each time. One election it is votes and the next election it is seats.
Anyway, if Barisan Nasional and PAS had contested as a coalition in the 2018 general election instead of in three-corner fights, the combined BN-PAS votes would have been more than the votes that Pakatan Harapan obtained.
And instead of winning just 79+18 seats (BN plus PAS respectively) — which would total just 97 seats — the BN-PAS coalition would have won 130-135 seats. In short, 1+1=3, not 1+1=2.
So, like it or not, Umno needs PAS and Bersatu as much as the two need Umno if they want to form the next federal government in GE15. A divided Umno-PAS-Bersatu would mean Pakatan Harapan would be back in power.
However, there are some in Umno who would rather see the party lose GE15 and allow Anwar Ibrahim to become PM9 rather than allow Bersatu to be the big brother. They want Umno to be the taiko and Bersatu to be just the machai. If Bersatu is the taiko and Umno is reduced to a machai, then they would rather lose GE15 and allow Pakatan Harapan to take over.
The English call this cutting the nose to spite the face, or, as the Malays would say, bakar kelambu kerana marah nyamuk.
