Muhyiddin: Perikatan Nasional Sidelined Bersatu

KUALA LUMPUR, July 17 — Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) President Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has expressed deep regret over allegations made by Tan Sri Annuar Musa, revealing that the party is being deliberately sidelined and excluded by Perikatan Nasional (PN).

Muhyiddin clarified that Bersatu never voluntarily split (mufarakah) from the coalition. Instead, he asserted that Bersatu’s rights as a founding member and legitimate component party of PN have been systematically denied through the suspension of seat negotiations and exclusion from pivotal leadership meetings.

“Bersatu did not split (mufarakah) voluntarily from Perikatan Nasional. Bersatu founded Perikatan Nasional and Bersatu remains a legitimate member party of Perikatan Nasional. However, Bersatu’s rights as a member party and founding party of Perikatan Nasional have been denied,” he said in a press statement today.

He revealed that election seat negotiations with Bersatu were intentionally halted under unreasonable pretexts. Furthermore, Bersatu was not invited to attend the Special Meeting of the Perikatan Nasional Supreme Council, which finalized the allocation of seats among the coalition’s component parties.

Responding to accusations that Bersatu acted ahead of the coalition’s collective decisions, Muhyiddin questioned the logic behind the claims given that their participation was actively blocked.

“So, why is Bersatu accused of preempting the meeting’s decision when we were not even invited to the meeting?” he questioned.

Regarding ongoing negotiations with Barisan Nasional (BN), Muhyiddin acknowledged that the PN Chairman had been granted permission to conduct talks, but slammed the execution process as “inverted” for bypassing the Supreme Council.

“I am not questioning the negotiations. The issue is that it involves matters of principle that should have been brought to the Perikatan Nasional Supreme Council first. Instead, negotiations were conducted without involving all member parties and without a mandate from the Supreme Council. Only after a decision on cooperation was made was it brought to the Supreme Council. This is an inverted way of doing things,” he explained.

Drawing a comparison to his tenure, the former Prime Minister noted that during his five years leading PN, no member party was ever sidelined in decision-making processes, particularly concerning core party principles and seat allocations. However, he lamented that the coalition’s administration has now “become chaotic.”

Muhyiddin also strongly rejected claims by Annuar Musa accusing Bersatu of obstructing Malay unity, describing the allegations as highly irresponsible. He recalled the early history of PN’s formation, which he conceptualized as a core coalition to unite Malay parties including UMNO, alongside multi-ethnic parties. However, UMNO refused to formally join the coalition at the time.

He added that PAS’s current trajectory to forge a political alignment with UMNO—which remains part of the Federal Unity Government alongside DAP—has resulted in Bersatu being cast aside.

“Because Perikatan Nasional led by PAS wants to create a coalition with UMNO, which still maintains relations with Pakatan Harapan including DAP, PAS has severed ties with Bersatu, and this Malay party that I lead has been sidelined by Perikatan Nasional. This is not true Malay unity. This is merely a realignment of political power,” Muhyiddin stressed.

Concluding his statement, Muhyiddin wished PN well and affirmed that Bersatu is prepared to move forward.

“Bersatu will not look back anymore. This party will continue to stand and march forward, hoisting the banners of its struggle for Malaysia and all its people,” he concluded.

-NMT