PAS, Umno reject new Malay party proposal

Ibrahim was told to form a new party if he wanted to. — file pic

KUALA LUMPUR, July 23 — PAS and Umno have rejected the proposal by Perkasa president Datuk Ibrahim Ali for the formation of a new party to pave the way for Malay unity.
Both parties described the proposal by the independent Pasir Mas MP as his “personal opinion.”

Mahfuz said there was no need to dissolve PAS or Umno. — file pic

However, leaders from the two largest Malay parties said that it was up to Ibrahim if he wanted to form a new party. “If he wants to turn Perkasa into a political party then it’s good. There is no need to dissolve PAS or Umno. Let there be three Malay parties — PAS, Umno and Perkasa — the people can decide which party they prefer,” said PAS vice-president Datuk Mahfuz Omar.
Another PAS vice-president, Salahuddin Ayub, refused to comment on the matter.
“Let him say whatever he wants. I do not want to entertain him,” he said.
Meanwhile, Umno information chief Datuk Ahmad Maslan said Umno would not be dissolved.
“Umno has contributed a lot since independence. We will continue to work towards uniting the Malays and Muslims and it will certainly benefit everyone in this country,” Ahmad told The Malaysian Insider.
“We will focus on unity, but Umno and PAS will not be dissolved. What Ibrahim said was his personal opinion,” he added

Ahmad said Ibrahim’s call was his own opinion. — file pic

Ahmad also said it was up to Ibrahim to form a new party if he so desired, but he pointed out that new parties are very unlikely to survive. He added that Umno had never faced any major problems except for one or two divisions.
“There has been no problem in 189 divisions, only one or two are problematic. Umno is strong and will continue to be so,” he said.
Yesterday Ibrahim suggested for both parties to be dissolved in favour of a new Malay party to unite the community.
He said that with the formation of the new party, the question of whether PAS should join Barisan Nasional (BN) does not arise.
The issue of bringing PAS and Umno together was raised by Perak Mufti Tan Sri Harussani Zakaria, who last weekend claimed that he had met with leaders from both parties to discuss the matter.
The government-appointed Islamic cleric also claimed that Datuk Seri Najib Razak has agreed to work with PAS in the interest Malay-Muslim unity and wanted the matter to proceed unconditionally.
His statement was, however, dismissed by PAS leaders who said that the Islamic party has never asked Harussani to act as mediator.