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Saturday, November 22, 2008, 10.06 PM

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ZUBAIDAH ABU BAKAR: Pas concerns leave Pakatan unity in doubt

Zubaidah Abu Bakar
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Recent statements portray all three parties as being in sync and ready to take on the might of the Barisan Nasional, but ground sentiments suggest otherwise.

The Pas members' dissatisfaction with the DAP-led state government over alleged "unfair distribution of power" has reached a point that led party president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang to make an unscheduled visit yesterday to check the situation.

Also, Penang Pas commissioner Salleh Man and division chief Dr Mujahid Yusuf, who is also a central committee member, were summoned to the party's political bureau meeting in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday.

Hadi, just back from a holiday in Indonesia, had his ears full listening to grassroots leaders at a meeting in Pongsu Seribu on the mainland.

It is said that the appointments of councillors, as well as representation in state government sub-committees, agencies and government-linked companies, was a major concern among a majority of the party's 15 divisions in Penang.

Unhappy members are said to be contemplating a boycott of the by-election.

One of the three state seats under the Permatang Pauh parliamentary constituency is Permatang Pasir, a Pas stronghold held by Penang Pas deputy commissioner Mohd Hamdan Abdul Rahman, who is in his third term.

Party officials said Hadi was likely to make a plea to Penang members to participate in the by-election when he opens the Penang Pas convention at a teachers' training college on the island today.

Unlike those from states like Kelantan and Terengganu, Pas members in Penang always toe the line.

Something must be seriously wrong for them to hold back from mobilising the party's machinery for the by-election.

Their problem, however, is said to have nothing to do with Parti Keadilan Rakyat defacto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who is facing a sodomy charge.

Despite being the odds-on favourite, Anwar needs all the help he can get to win Permatang Pauh with a morale-boosting majority and keep alive his dream of becoming prime minister.

The announcement on Aug 3 that PKR, Pas and DAP are to jointly organise campaign activities has not amounted to much since.

Pas has to find a workable solution, and fast, or its vice-president Husam Musa's hopes of using the by-election as a ramp to strengthen unity in Pakatan Rakyat will fizzle out.

If it fails, Pas will not be able to maintain its commitment to Pakatan Rakyat to the satisfaction of its partners.