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KUALA LUMPUR: Is Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia keen to join Muafakat Nasional (MN), or have Umno leaders collectively agreed to welcome Bersatu as a pact member?
Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi's latest statement on his party's refusal to join Perikatan Nasional (PN) is said to have confused allies and members, as revealed by contradictory claims on the matter soon after.
An insider who holds a high-level position in Putrajaya said Bersatu president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin had never expressed an intention for Bersatu to join MN as claimed by Zahid.
"Muhyiddin has never expressed the desire for Bersatu to join MN. Umno was the one who extended the invitation for Muhyiddin to attend the meet-up and so he went there to hear what Umno had to say."
In a press conference yesterday, Zahid said during a meeting at the Parliament building on Wednesday, Muhyiddin had expressed a "desire" for Bersatu to join MN, a political pact between Umno and Pas.
Preceding the statement was the intention to go separate ways with PN, which, until today, has yet to receive approval from the Registrar of Societies (RoS) as a formal coalition.
Zahid's announcement had confused some Umno leaders, with one claiming that neither he nor most of his colleagues were approached to discuss the future of the party, let alone decide whether it would be with PN or stay in MN.
"All I know is that Zahid came up with that decision after talking to three or four (Umno) members of parliament (MP) but not with the rest of us. To answer your question, no, this is not a collective agreement within Umno."
Be that as it may, political analyst Dr Awang Azman Awang Pawi pointed out that in Umno, the concept of "taat" (obedience) is established deeply and therefore, party members, even if they disagree with Zahid, would eventually abide by the party president's decision.
"I also see this as Umno's first step in distancing itself from Bersatu and PN because many Umno MPs thought they could be spared from legal action if they are part of PN.
"But it's proven to be not the case with (former prime minister Datuk Seri) Najib Razak's conviction (on Wednesday)."
A cabinet member also revealed to the New Straits Times that Umno was never included as a component in the registration sent to RoS to formalise PN.
"The story goes like this: when we sent our application to RoS to formalise PN, the parties included in the list are Bersatu, Pas and some Barisan Nasional component parties, without Umno.
"This is because Umno has never agreed with our condition that all PN members will be equal partners. We decided to proceed with the registration thinking that when Umno is ready, it will join us then," the cabinet member said.
In his statement, Zahid also said that Umno would work on strengthening the cooperation with its BN component parties.
But a Bersatu supreme leadership council member believed it to be a political manoeuvre on Zahid's part and described his statement as a "desperate attempt to keep BN together".
The council member claimed that excluding Umno, "two top BN component parties" have agreed to leave Umno and join PN because "the grass will be greener for them".
"They will be equal partners in PN. For so long, these parties have been sidelined and they longed for fairness. Nobody likes to be pushed around and these parties have had enough of it," the council member said.
Another cabinet member, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, questioned Zahid's motive for releasing the statement and his sincerity after previously voicing support for Muhyiddin as prime minister.
"We want a democratic country which upholds the rule of law. So, just because Najib has been convicted, now Umno wants to play hardball with PN?
"Where is that sincerity in the pledge for reforms in the country, to empower Malaysians and build the economy? Umno's, or at least Zahid's, sincerity is now clear to everyone," the cabinet member said.
And within this quagmire, Pas, through its reliable grassroots machinery, stands to have the final say in galvanising Umno's political survival, Professor Dr Sivamurugan Pandian said.
The political analyst also contended that both Bersatu and Umno were vying for the Islamic party's support for their respective coalition.
"Will Pas proceed with joining PN or will it go back to Umno and always be on its toes, hoping the 1978 tragedy won't recur?" he said, referring to Pas's nexus with BN from 1972 to 1978, but was kicked out of the then ruling coalition due to disagreements.
"Now, it is all up to Pas. The biggest winner in all this mess is Pas because Umno's lifeline depends very much on Pas. If Pas leaves MN, that'll be the end of Umno," he said.