THE FUTURE WILL DETERMINE PAS UMNO CO-OPERATION

PAS presiden , Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi is now seen to be balancing PAS’s political game-plan in the wake of Pakatan Rakyat’s facing critical turbulence which may dash all its political hopes and dreams.

Datuk Seri Hadi’s opposition to the involvement of Australian law-makers in the sodomy trial of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim,the Parti Keadilan Rakyat’s advisor, was a slap in the face to the DAP and would also greatly upset Anwar Ibrahim especially when he needed all the support.

But Hadi has his own rationale. He does not want to be with the group that will erode the people’s confidence towards justice and impartiality of the country’s judicial system.

Hadi has to take this course of action because PAS’s supporters have begun to feel that the party’s image and morale will be further eroded by the Pakatan Rakyat’s current style of political struggle which is seen to be more provocative and abusive than PAS itself.. This then would place PAS as a second fiddle in the coalition.

If this state of affairs continue, then PAS will face a tragic disaster in the next election.

PAS’s strength rely greatly on its extremist and hard-line religious struggle to shape the country’s Islamic image.

Nik Aziz, PAS’s spiritual advisor, has always denied and challenged all Islamic principles advocated by the BN and with this stand he will be able to maintain the influence he has on his traditional supporters who are archaic, more old-fashioned and very dogmatic.

However since associating himself with the DAP and Keadilan, Nik Aziz has realised that whatever he has been vociferously advocating or even his Islamic policies, will never be enforced in a multiracial country like Malaysia.

Whatever it is, the professionals in PAS felt that if “ Nik Aziz’s style” were to continue, PAS will ultimately sink together with Pakatan Rakyat because their policies and struggles for the Malays and Islam have clearly diminished and become irrelevant. It was actually this policy that had given PAS the support all this while.

Nik Aziz is seen to be more bent on seeking revenge rather than politically fighting for the Malays and Islam. He seems to be more afraid of a political punishment rather than the wrath of Allah.

To spare the feelings of Nik Aziz, Haji Hadi had to come out with a statement that PAS will never collaborate with the BN to form the government as it did in the 70s.

Regardless of whatever statements he has been making, people have started to see Hadi’s political approach as being more rational, intelligent, accommodative and no longer extremist ; national politics notwithstanding.

The political process that had forced PAS to co-operate with PKR and the DAP had matured the party’s political approach which in the past had been misplaced in a multi-racial society ; a policy that defies reality ! UMNO had not been able to initiate changes in PAS. On the other hand, the DAP and Keadilan were successful in changing several of its political approaches and policies. Thus , PAS is no longer the ‘old’ PAS. It has a new image !

Admittedly, PAS with its moderate, rational and non-extremists attitude ,now no longer talk about the ‘Hudud’ laws or even condemn other Muslims as being un-Islamic. This would make it easier for a PAS and UMNO co-operation when the right time comes.

It is true that PAS’s hard-line and extremist attitude was the reason why the party and UMNO could not work together before. PAS would be more effective to uplift UMNO’s morale through this new form of co-operation ; unlike the kind of coalition as described earlier, which was really weak and formed purely for political interests, without giving due thoughts to the question of security, religion and country !