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PUTRAJAYA – Amanah deputy president Datuk Seri Dr Mujahid Yusof Rawa claims Barisan Nasional (BN) "betrayed" its unity government partners by working with Perikatan Nasional (PN) in the Negeri Sembilan state election, resulting in the collapse of the state administration formed with Pakatan Harapan (PH).
He said the move had not only undermined the spirit of cooperation within the unity government, but had also confused the public, as BN, which is part of the Federal Government, used the advantage of its official positions to campaign against PH in the state.
“The political message to the people became even more confusing when BN, as a component of the unity government, collaborated with the opposition from PN while using the advantage of their positions as ministers and other official roles to campaign in Negeri Sembilan.
“BN’s actions in Negeri Sembilan are regrettable because it openly 'betrayed' its partner by dividing seats with PN to defeat the unity government in Negeri Sembilan, which was formed together before the state election,” he said in a Facebook post on Monday.
According to Mujahid, the victory of the BN-PN alliance also signalled that politics centred on race and religious identity had overtaken the values-based politics championed by PH.
He claimed voters in Negeri Sembilan had placed greater emphasis on sentiment and emotion than on the state government's performance and achievements when deciding their support.
He said the development was worrying as it could further strain racial and religious relations while undermining national stability and unity.
“PH must realise that the aspiration for unity it hoped to build together with BN has been overtaken by the Malay-Muslim supremacy agenda promoted by PN, and in its pursuit of power, BN was willing to abandon the vision of a Malaysia free from racial and religious prejudice and hatred,” he said.
Mujahid said PH must therefore reflect on the election outcome and build new strengths ahead of the next general election, including reassessing its approach to strengthening values-based politics across racial and religious lines.
The 16th Negeri Sembilan state election, held last Saturday, saw BN emerge as the largest party after winning 18 of the 36 State Legislative Assembly seats.
PH secured 13 seats, while PN won five seats, bringing the PH-led state administration to an end.
The results also gave the BN-PN alliance control of 23 out of the 36 State Legislative Assembly seats, surpassing the simple majority threshold of 19 seats required to form the new state government.
The outcome was also seen as one of the most significant political shifts following BN's landslide victory in the Johor state election last month.