KUALA LUMPUR: If you read the transcript of former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s Aug 15 campaign speech, the one that saw him charged with sedition on Tuesday (Aug 27), you would be puzzled.

It wasn’t so much about what he said – seemingly questioning the former king’s decision to not invite him to be sworn in as prime minister after Malaysia’s 2022 general election (GE15), despite claiming to have sufficient backing from parliamentarians.

You would be puzzled because you could not understand why a 77-year-old veteran with over 50 years of political experience would put himself in high political risk with little to gain.

The definitive part of the speech read: “Who was the king at that time? Pahang (referring to former king Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah).”

In a country with deep reverence for its royal institutions – with a Sedition Act kept specifically to protect them – the speech appeared as an amateurish mistake unbecoming of a senior politician. 

Worse, the speech hardly aided his coalition Perikatan Nasional (PN)’s chances at the Nenggiri by-election on Aug 17. In the end, PN lost its state seat to the UMNO candidate by a sizable 3,352 majority.

Unsurprisingly, many parties condemned the speech, and at least 29 police reports were lodged against Muhyiddin.

When Muhyiddin showed up in the Kelantan court, many senior leaders of PN coalition partner Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) were reportedly nowhere to be found. PAS deputy president Tuan Ibrahim’s criticism against the charge focused more on the use of the colonial-era Sedition Act than the alleged speech itself.

GROWING DIVIDE IN PERIKATAN NASIONAL

It is not far-fetched to interpret this as a growing divide between Muhyiddin’s Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) and PAS. PAS is undoubtedly the senior partner of the coalition.

It won the most seats in the previous parliamentary election (58 per cent of PN seats) and six state polls in August 2023 (72 per cent of PN seats).  Its grassroots machinery – volunteers, Unit Amal security and traffic manning, canvassers – is the most mature in the coalition, in addition to committed members and a 70-year-old religious movement.

Bersatu’s reliance on PAS’s machinery in GE15 was so obvious that they were willing to forgo its logo and use PAS’ green-white logo in Kelantan.Related:Commentary: The curious case of PAS’ stance against KK Super Mart boycott amid socks uproar Commentary: Anwar moves to slow down the rise of PAS with new deputy religious affairs minister BERSATU’S VALUE TO PAS IS FADING FAST

What Bersatu had to offer PAS were funding, west coast urban appeal and its national leaders. One by one, they have since rapidly eroded. 

Bersatu’s key accounts were seized and frozen by the Malaysia Anti-Corruption Commission in April 2023. Lack of coordination by the opposition also meant that PN seats have not negotiated with the government to receive constituency allocations (RM3.5 million or US$750,000 annually per seat).

In the August 2023 state elections, PAS also realised that it could win on the west coast on its own. In Negeri Sembilan, PAS won three out of PN’s five seats even though it contested fewer seats. It also won in areas not traditionally under its remit like Tangga Batu and Jasin in Melaka.

PAS recognised thisdragon casino online, and reflected this in the state executive council distributions, by affording Bersatu only 9 per cent of its share in Kelantan and Terengganu, and 27 per cent and 37 per cent in Kedah and Perlis respectively. The executive councils of the loose administrative coalition of the four states – dubbed the “SG4” – also marginalised Bersatu leaders.

PAS flags in Chukai town, Terengganu. (Photo: CNA/Fadza Ishak)

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