PAS has challenged Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to honourably step down from his position if Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Barisan Nasional (BN) fail to defend their respective seats in the forthcoming state elections expected to be held in July.
PAS information chief Khairil Nizam Khirudin said this in response to Zahid’s previous challenge to Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to use the six state polls as a “yardstick” to gauge the people’s support.
“In the event PH-BN falls, the DPM has to step down honourably,” Khairil Nizam noted in a post on Facebook, adding that the 15th general election (GE15) has proven to be BN-UMNO’s worst defeat in its political history.
“BN had only managed to win 30 parliamentary seats with UMNO winning only 26 of the 30, and this is the UMNO president’s worst achievement so far.”
On Sunday (May 21) Zahid had urged Muhyiddin to use the state elections as a platform to gauge the people’s support.
Speaking at a press conference after attending the Vaisakhi celebration in Kuala Lumpur, Zahid wished Muhyiddin “good luck” in the upcoming state elections and called for the Bersatu president to prove who is more accepted by the people through the six state polls.
Meanwhile, Khairil Nizam, who is also Jerantut MP, also noted that there were many issues that had arisen in the past few months that had affected the people’s confidence in the PH-BN government, and with UMNO’s “submission” to DAP, he is confident that UMNO members would shift their support to PN.
He said the shift in support was further compounded by the dispute over the distribution of seats between UMNO and DAP in several states to the point where many UMNO members are now determined to openly oppose the party.
“PAS is confident that the turmoil within the PH-BN government, in addition to the weakness of the 10th Prime Minister’s (PMX) administration, will be punished by the people during the state elections,” he added. – May 23, 2023
