PETALING JAYA: Work together or ride on the strength of established alliances. This is the advice political analysts have for new and small parties contesting in the Johor state election.
Nusantara Academy for Strategic Research senior fellow Prof Azmi Hassan said these parties would otherwise not make any headway in the polls.
“Now is not the time for them to test their strength,” he told theSun. “They can do that at the next general election.”
Another analyst, Council of Professors Malaysia senior fellow Dr Jeniri Amir, said the failure of smaller parties to work together would only be advantageous for Barisan Nasional (BN), the coalition that won handsomely in the Malacca state election.
Among the new parties that have announced their intention to field candidates in the polls are Muda, Pejuang, Warisan and newly-registered Parti Bangsa Malaysia (PBM).
Pejuang is led by former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad while his protege Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman heads Muda.
Warisan, a Sabah-based party led by former chief minister Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal, is making its first foray into the peninsula in the Johor polls.
PBM, the newest kid on the block, was formed from remnants of the Sarawak Workers Party, and is led by former Julau member of parliament Larry Sng.
Azmi said the new parties would have a very slim chance of forming a government or even being a part of one if they do not work together.
“If they are really keen on contesting, they should form an alliance among themselves. Better still, they could work with established coalitions such as BN, Pakatan Harapan (PH) or Perikatan Nasional.”
He added that this would ensure that votes are not split too many ways. “In most instances, such a situation would only favour the ruling party.”
Azmi cited the possible cooperation between Muda and PH stalwarts DAP and Amanah as the way to go.
He said, on the other hand, Pejuang’s intention to field candidates in 42 constituencies would not give the party a real chance of winning enough seats to form a government.
He pointed out that voters are weary of the constant political upheavals caused by weak administrations. “They want a strong and stable government.”
Jeniri cited the Sarawak state election last year as evidence that multi-cornered fights do not work in favour of small parties.
“These new parties ended up splitting the votes, and they helped to return the GPS (Gabungan Parti Sarawak) to power.”
He said parties such as Muda and Warisan would not have much of a chance to win in Johor. “Being based in Sabah, Warisan will have trouble making inroads into the state, while Muda is relatively unknown and has no grassroots support.
“The only way forward is for them to work together but right now that does not seem to be happening.”
He said these parties must realise that voters want a strong and stable government and their actions should therefore help achieve this.
“People have had enough of weak governments.”
He said that having such governments have hurt people’s livelihoods.
Johoreans will go to the polls to elect a new state government on March 12. Nomination has been set for Saturday, with early voting on March 8.
A total of 56 seats are up for grabs.