‘Hadi could have been PM if PAS had stayed with Pakatan Rakyat’
If PAS had stayed with PKR and DAP in then Pakatan Rakyat coalition, (PAS president) Abdul Hadi Awang may have become a prime minister, said Kedah Amanah chairperson Phahrolrazi Mohd Zawawi.
This was basically the gist of Malaysiakini's recent interview with the former Kedah PAS leader at his house in Alor Setar, Kedah.
Asked to reminisce about the time when PAS decided to withdraw from Pakatan Rakyat, the Alor Mengkudu assemblyperson said he believed the decision was made because of the mindset of some party leaders at the time.
According to him, political enemies had been trying to break up the opposition coalition for quite some time, even since the days when PAS was being led by the late Fadzil Noor and its then spiritual leader Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat.
However, all these attempts did not work back then.
He said PAS had seen changes in its leadership over the years, and it had always participated in elections and looked really strong.
Political reality
"(But) when we contest in elections, we lose. Our ceramah was attended by tens of thousands of people but we would still lose elections.
"We may be victorious on the east coast but we could not get a hold of the west coast. So it is even harder for us to move towards forming a federal government.
“Like in Kedah, if the population composition is similar to Kelantan, we would have won (the state) a long time ago. But the group that has the determining power is not the Malays.
"So why do we go into elections - do we want to win or lose? Do we go into elections just for the sake of doing it, or to gain pahala (afterlife rewards), or we want to win?" he asked.
Phahrolrazi (above) said PAS at the time needed strategic cooperation to ensure they could get wider support.
"So, there was the need to have a strategy, to make changes. We could not work with MCA then because they were already with BN, Umno. So, the only one left was DAP.
"But we did put some conditions to work together. First, they must respect the constitution, that Islam is the official religion of the country, Bahasa Melayu is the official language and respect the Malay rulers.
"If they can accept these, then the issue of fair treatment is a common issue.
“We also reject corruption. But when it comes to the special rights of the Malays, about Bahasa Melayu, Islam, can they accept? If they say they can accept these things in the constitution, then what is wrong (to work together with them)?
"And we have seen the result of this, we started to win. We had recorded victories since 1999, and our principle is that we cannot stand on our own. We must work with other parties," said Phahrolrazi who used to hold a state exco post in Kedah during former state menteri besar Azizan Razak’s leadership.
Former PAS spiritual leader Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat
The politician said such cooperation had started since PAS worked together with the now defunct Semangat 46 party, which managed to wrestle Kelantan.
"So, this thing has been going on from one stage to another. If we were to continue this, PAS would be able to eventually take over the country's administration.
“So, Umno as PAS’ political enemy, do you think they just want to sit and watch this happen? Because if this was allowed to go on, then Umno would lose out.
"If I were Umno, do you think I would just sit around and see this happen? Of course not.
“I will find ways to break up Pakatan Rakyat. And they did many attempts during the time of Nik Aziz and Fadzil but they could not break us apart.
"Because of the politics of Fadzil, he was not an extremist who would go to the extent of calling Umno an infidel. He was like that.
“Also similar was Nik Aziz. But when one is too extreme, then we can fall down easily. This was what happened when they were gone because Umno had made a move to break up the coalition," said Phahrolrazi.
He added that if Hadi were to follow the same policy practised by Fadzil and Nik Aziz, PAS and Pakatan Rakyat could have formed a federal government together.
The politician said such cooperation had started since PAS worked together with the now defunct Semangat 46 party, which managed to wrestle Kelantan.
"So, this thing has been going on from one stage to another. If we were to continue this, PAS would be able to eventually take over the country's administration.
“So, Umno as PAS’ political enemy, do you think they just want to sit and watch this happen? Because if this was allowed to go on, then Umno would lose out.
"If I were Umno, do you think I would just sit around and see this happen? Of course not.
“I will find ways to break up Pakatan Rakyat. And they did many attempts during the time of Nik Aziz and Fadzil but they could not break us apart.
"Because of the politics of Fadzil, he was not an extremist who would go to the extent of calling Umno an infidel. He was like that.
“Also similar was Nik Aziz. But when one is too extreme, then we can fall down easily. This was what happened when they were gone because Umno had made a move to break up the coalition," said Phahrolrazi.
He added that if Hadi were to follow the same policy practised by Fadzil and Nik Aziz, PAS and Pakatan Rakyat could have formed a federal government together.
PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang
"We are puzzled with Hadi's political mindset, he turned 180 degrees. If Hadi were to follow the same policy, I think we would have been the government.
"He could have been a prime minister even, that is not impossible. He was once featured in an international magazine as one of Malaysia's future leaders," Phahrolrazi said.
However, he added, it was somewhat regrettable to see a split in PAS, which was caused by political ploys by party enemies whom some had mistaken as friends.
"One of the factors that could easily bring people down is money. Money is the evil that breaks people apart.
“And there are many subtle ways for (the enemies) to use money and they usually involve a huge amount," he said.
"We are puzzled with Hadi's political mindset, he turned 180 degrees. If Hadi were to follow the same policy, I think we would have been the government.
"He could have been a prime minister even, that is not impossible. He was once featured in an international magazine as one of Malaysia's future leaders," Phahrolrazi said.
However, he added, it was somewhat regrettable to see a split in PAS, which was caused by political ploys by party enemies whom some had mistaken as friends.
"One of the factors that could easily bring people down is money. Money is the evil that breaks people apart.
“And there are many subtle ways for (the enemies) to use money and they usually involve a huge amount," he said.
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