In an exclusive interview with Free Malaysia Today, former prime minister Dr. Mahathir Mohamad stated that the Islamic party PAS cannot form the federal government on its own due to its limited popularity. He noted that PAS only secures significant votes in Kedah, Kelantan, Perlis and Terengganu, which is insufficient to govern. “That’s not enough,” said Dr Mahathir, who serves as an unofficial adviser to the four PAS-led state governments.
In the interview, Mahathir highlighted that although PAS won over 40 parliamentary seats in the 2022 general election, this is still not enough to form a government. He emphasized that PAS needs to collaborate with other parties to achieve a simple majority of 112 seats in the Dewan Rakyat, as they would need about 80 more seats, primarily from the west coast of the peninsula, where PAS lacks support.
Mahathir explained that PAS must work with non-Malays and Malays who are not PAS members or supporters to govern the country. He also pointed out that despite UMNO’s decline in support among Malay voters and Bersatu’s challenges with corruption cases and defections, PAS would still struggle to secure a majority in the lower house.
This sentiment aligns with the views of expert political analyst Bridget Welsh. During her appearance on the show ‘Do More - Take Charge of Your Life’ with Khoo Hsu Chuang, Welsh expressed that it is "very possible" for PAS to govern Malaysia and within three years, no less. However, echoing Dr. Mahathir's perspective, she emphasized that PAS cannot govern alone and would need to collaborate with other parties to form a coalition. To read more on why she says that PAS will end up governing Malaysia one day, refer to my article, "Very possible" that PAS could govern Malaysia one day, according to expert SEA political analyst.
Currently, PAS (43 seats) and Bersatu (25 seats) form the opposition in Parliament, while the government consists of a coalition of Pakatan Harapan, Barisan Nasional, and East Malaysia parties, controlling 153 seats.
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