MELAKA: The sharp exchanges between Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Barisan Nasional (BN) during the state election campaign may not end on polling day, but analysts believe the federal Unity government would survive them.
Political analyst Prof Dr Wong Chin Huat said the increasingly heated exchanges reflect strains that could continue until Parliament is dissolved, rather than disappear once campaigning ends.
He said support from Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) provides Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim with political leverage, limiting BN’s ability to use the threat of withdrawing from the administration as a bargaining tool.
“The PH-BN relationship is and will remain tense at the federal level until Parliament is dissolved.
“However, this tension would not break the federal government as long as GPS and GRS continue to back Anwar.
“BN dares not pull out if it would end up in the opposition while the government survives.“
He argued that future parliamentary alignments could also influence the East Malaysian coalitions’ calculations, as their bargaining power would depend partly on whether peninsular parties could form a majority without them.
The exchanges intensified after Melaka PH chairman Adly Zahari challenged BN on Sunday to prove its claim that 97 per cent of the 103 initiatives in its 2021 election manifesto had been fulfilled.
On Monday, BN deputy chairman Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan criticised unnamed government partners for behaving like opposition parties and urged campaigners to focus on achievements rather than insults.
The strained relationship at state level predates the election.
Melaka PH withdrew from the BN-led state administration in July after opposing constitutional amendments allowing the appointment of up to seven unelected assemblymen.
However, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities director Assoc Prof Dr Mazlan Ali offered a different interpretation, describing the exchanges as tactical positioning rather than evidence of a serious rupture.
“The exchanges between Adly Zahari and Mohamad Hasan are better understood as electoral posturing, not a sign that the Unity government in Putrajaya is breaking apart.
“When parties contest against one another, they have to distinguish their political identities so that their core supporters have a reason to turn out and vote.“
Mazlan said PH needed to challenge BN’s administrative record to present itself as an alternative, while BN sought to defend its reputation and remind PH of their shared responsibilities at federal level.
“This is controlled friction. It is more about election strategy, and their relationship at federal level could return to normal after polling.“
Universiti Malaya political analyst Dr Mohammad Tawfik Yaakub similarly described the confrontation as political manoeuvring, but emphasised that prolonged personal attacks could erode trust even without immediately endangering the government.
“This reflects the unusual political situation in which PH and BN work together in the federal Unity government but compete against each other in a state election.
“Overly aggressive competition risks damaging trust between leaders and supporters, especially when the attacks shift from policy differences to questions of integrity and the legitimacy of an administration.“
He said the coalitions still shared an interest in maintaining federal stability, noting that Mohamad had urged parties not to allow the state contest to undermine their cooperation in Putrajaya.
Polling for all 28 state seats takes place on Saturday.
