PETALING JAYA: Datuk Seri Rafizi Ramli and Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad have described their high-stakes defection to take over the Parti Bersama Malaysia (Bersama) as a "second kamikaze mission", conceding there is absolutely no guarantee of political survival.
The announcement puts an end to intense speculation surrounding the political futures of the Pandan and Setiawangsa MPs.
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Bersama, a Penang-registered minor party, was handed over to the duo by its founder Tan Gin Theam on Sunday (May 17).
Addressing the crowd in a speech lasting nearly an hour, Rafizi said existing political parties no longer possess the agility, courage or intellect demanded by the public to face challenges over the next 30 years.
Acknowledging the immense risk of launching a new political force just ahead of the general election, Rafizi was candid about the possibility of total failure.
"Realising this, Nik Nazmi, myself and our friends have agreed to launch a 'kamikaze' mission once again.
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"We know there is no guarantee we will succeed. We might lose our deposits in every seat and be laughed at. We might retire from politics as failures,” he said.
He argued, however, that the gamble was worthwhile to save voters - particularly Gen Z, Gen Alpha, and Gen Beta - from being forced to choose "the best among the bad".
Rafizi also revealed that the takeover had been meticulously planned over the past year.
To bypass inevitable registration hurdles, the team registered several "decoy" parties to distract Putrajaya while quietly negotiating a takeover with current Bersama president Tan Gin Theam.
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Nik Nazmi, the former natural resources and environmental sustainability minister, echoed Rafizi’s sentiments.
He revealed that the decision was driven by widespread public disillusionment with the current political establishment and the Pakatan Harapan coalition.
"Every day people ask, what has happened? Why are Pakatan and PKR like this? Why are Pakatan betraying their core principles and repeating the same mistakes we elected them to fix? It is hard to answer," Nik Nazmi said.
He claimed this frustration was evident across the country, citing voters in Sabah who chose to stay home during the last state election, families in Selangor who feel the promise of reform has faded and civil servants in his own Setiawangsa constituency dealing with strained public infrastructure.
