PH to benefit more from cooperation with Muda, analysts say on Johor polls

Cooperation between Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Muda at the upcoming state election in Johor will benefit the opposition coalition comprising PKR, DAP and Amanah more than the youth-based party led by Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman, analysts say.

Ahmad Atory Hussain of Universiti Sains Malaysia said voters would view the approach as a move to offer a range of candidates from diverse backgrounds.

“Up until now, none of Muda’s candidates has shown the potential to be nominated as menteri besar,” he told MalaysiaNow.

“If they win, chances are that PH will determine who is put forward for the position,” he said, adding that the candidate would likely come from PKR or Amanah.

As Muda was a political newcomer, he said, it would probably be overshadowed by PH and its lynchpin party PKR, which will be contesting the election under its own banner.

This is despite its president Anwar Ibrahim being chairman of the opposition coalition.

DAP and Amanah, meanwhile, will field their candidates under the PH logo.

The two parties recently said they had reached an agreement through which Muda would contest six seats in the Johor legislative assembly: Tenang, Bukit Kepong, Parit Raja, Machap, Puteri Wangsa and Bukit Permai.

They said they would stay out of these six seats to avoid a clash at the March 12 polls.

Mujibu Abd Muis of Universiti Teknologi Mara said the cooperation between PH and Muda would be short-lived.

Noting the differences in ideology between the two groups, he said the agreement was nevertheless necessary as part of efforts to topple Barisan Nasional (BN) in Johor – long seen as an Umno stronghold.

Speaking to MalaysiaNow, he said BN was seen as a common enemy among opposition parties in the state.

He said this approach was the best way to avoid a split in votes come election day.

“If the opposition is split, BN will automatically possess the edge,” he added.

“This is the situation that Muda and PKR-PH are anticipating. So they are forced to put aside their egos and ideologies as each of them knows that if they contest alone, they will have no chance of winning.”

Mujibu said the cooperation with Muda was also important as voter confidence in PH had been on the decline since 2018.

“PH did not make much headway during its time in the state government, and this has affected voters’ perception of the coalition,” he said.

Atory meanwhile said that the influence in Johor of Syed Saddiq, who is Muar MP, might have shrunk since the 2018 polls as well, leaving his party in need of support from PH’s election machinery.

“Syed Saddiq is the only candidate from Muda who is well known,” he said. “This is also Muda’s first election.

“So there is a chance that voters, even among the youth, might hesitate to vote for them. The best way to increase confidence in the party is through a show of experience in facing elections.”

James Chin of the University of Tasmania in Australia meanwhile said cooperation for the Johor election did not mean that Muda would join PH.

On the contrary, he said, it was a joint effort to prevent a clash while going head-to-head with BN and Perikatan Nasional.

“If any formal cooperation is inked, it would likely be between Muda and Warisan,” Chin told MalaysiaNow.

“Muda has already stated in no uncertain terms that this cooperation is only temporary, in order to tackle the Johor election.”