Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) Deputy President Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man speaking at the launch of an Iran humanitarian aid campaign "Malaysia-Aid41ran: Solidarity and Humanity", at the party's headquarters on May 19, 2026. (Photo: Facebook/Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man)

PAS urges UMNO to collaborate in Johor polls, revive defunct political pact

PAS Deputy President Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man on Wednesday (Jun 3) called for the revival of Muafakat Nasional - created to consolidate the Malay-Muslim vote - stressing cooperation between the country’s two largest Malay-Muslim parties.

04 Jun 2026, 08:50 · CNA · Join

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KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s largest opposition party Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) has called on United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) to work together in the upcoming Johor state election, reviving a defunct political pact.

PAS Deputy President Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man on Wednesday (Jun 3) stressed cooperation between the country’s two largest Malay-Muslim parties and urged the revival of Muafakat Nasional (MN) - created to consolidate the Malay-Muslim vote.

"Muafakat Nasional was formed out of concern over the then-Pakatan Harapan government, which was seen as potentially eroding peace and harmony in Malaysia. Now is the time to realise Muafakat Nasional 2.0," he said in a Facebook post.

Formed in September 2019, MN was a short-lived political pact between PAS and UMNO, led by ex-UMNO member Annuar Musa. The pact was later disbanded over disagreement on whether to collaborate with Bersatu, a splinter party of UMNO.

On Wednesday, Tuan Ibrahim, who is deputy chairman of opposition coalition Perikatan Nasional (PN), said that the dissolution of the Johor assembly on Monday opened the door to new political change in the country, with potential to restore Malay, Muslim and Bumiputera political strength.

Bumiputera is the official term for the country’s indigenous and Malay ethnic groups.

“All of this can only be achieved with consensus and tolerance among the country’s major Malay-Muslim political parties,” he said in his post.

"This should serve as a wake-up call for Malay political leaders, particularly PAS and UMNO, to act before it is too late," he added, stressing that Islam must be the foundation for Malay political unity.

PAS is the lynchpin party in the PN coalition, working alongside Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu). Parti Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia (Gerakan) and the Malaysian Indian People's Party play minor roles in the coalition.

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On Wednesday, Johor PAS chief Mahfodz Mohamed said the party was targeting more than 10 seats in the Johor polls as part of PN’s campaign, adding that the party would focus on winnable seats rather than a large number of constituencies, reported local news outlet Free Malaysia Today.

Mahfodz said PAS was prepared to work with groups outside PN, including the Reset movement founded by former Bersatu deputy president Hamzah Zainudin, as part of efforts to strengthen Muslim unity.

“That is why we do not want to work only with Bersatu if possible. We want to cooperate with everyone, whether it is the Reset group ... or others,” he said.

In his Facebook post, Tuan Ibrahim added that Johor’s assembly dissolution could help build a more cohesive and comprehensive Bumiputera political bloc, not only in the peninsula but also in East Malaysia’s Sabah and Sarawak.

He highlighted several issues concerning Malay-Muslim interests, including recognition of the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC), authority of Malay rulers and legal challenges to state Syariah enactments.

The PN deputy chairman added that the division among Malay political parties and the failure to unite the Malays politically had contributed to these issues.

On Monday, Johor’s state assembly was dissolved after state Chief Minister Onn Hafiz Ghazi sought consent of the Johor Regent Tunku Ismail to sign the dissolution, paving the way for elections to be held within 60 days.

This means the 16th Johor state polls have to be held by Jul 31.

On Thursday, BN chairman Zahid, who is also UMNO’s president, reiterated BN’s stance to contest all seats in the upcoming Johor polls, although Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who leads PH, had hoped to work out a deal to avoid clashes.

While BN is aligned with PH at the federal level, they are rivals at the state level in Johor and Melaka, whose state election is due by early 2027.

UMNO President Ahmad Zahid Hamidi speaking at the party's 80th anniversary celebration at the World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur on May 2, 2026. (Photo: Facebook/Barisan Nasional)

Zahid, who is also deputy prime minister, added that the 56 candidates BN will field - consisting of incumbents and new faces - would be finalised soon and revealed a week before nomination day.

Asked if BN would stick to its "WALI" (Winnable, Likeable, and Acceptable) formula for selecting candidates, Zahid said it would, reported local news outlet New Straits Times.

"These three philosophies … will be maintained," he said.

On May 16, Johor Chief Minister and Johor BN Onn Hafiz Ghazi said that BN would contest all 56 seats.

A day later, Anwar said PH was also prepared to contest all seats in Johor, and warned against BN’s intent to go solo, saying it was akin to threats that could amount to “betrayal” to their unity government partnership and would “negotiate properly” with UMNO president, Zahid.

“Do not threaten us or move toward betrayal,” Anwar said at a PH convention on May 17.

“I will meet the UMNO president and negotiate properly. Why should we fight over it? Where we were lacking, we have helped a lot, helped everyone,” the prime minister said then, adding that he hoped to reach an agreement.

Anwar, however, has yet to meet with Zahid as of last week, reported local news outlet Malaysiakini.

Malaysia’s general election is not due until February 2028.

In Johor’s last polls in March 2022, BN secured a two-thirds majority with 40 of the 56 seats in the state assembly, 33 of which were held by UMNO. Meanwhile, PH won 12 and PN won three.

Johor’s assembly dissolution has sparked speculation that it could pave the way for snap polls in other states including Negeri Sembilan, Melaka and Perlis.

On Thursday, Anwar was asked whether he would dissolve parliament and call for a snap general election following the dissolution of the Johor state assembly.

He said that the decision to dissolve a state assembly lies with the respective state government, and said that the federal government remains focused on its agenda and responsibilities.

“I’m focusing on my job. The problem is some of these people don’t think of this. We should focus on the job,” he said after officiating the Energy Transition Conference 2026.

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