PETALING JAYA: Bersatu says it has been sidelined by the Perikatan Nasional leadership, with its rights as a founding and component party denied, says Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
Responding to criticism from Perikatan information chief Tan Sri Annuar Musa, the Bersatu president denied that his party wanted to part ways with Perikatan, insisting the party remained a legitimate component member of the coalition.
"Seat negotiations with Bersatu for the election did not proceed. In fact, negotiations were deliberately halted on unreasonable grounds.
"So why is Bersatu being accused of acting ahead of the coalition's decision when it was not even invited to the meeting?" Muhyiddin said in a statement posted on Facebook on Friday (July 17).
On Thursday (July 16), Annuar said that Bersatu's decision to contest the Negri Sembilan election using its own logo indicates that it has chosen to part ways with Perikatan.
The Perikatan information chief added that the announcement was made before the coalition's supreme council meeting on Thursday morning to finalise candidate selection, seat allocation and the use of logos.
Regarding negotiations with Barisan Nasional, Muhyiddin said the Perikatan chairman himself acknowledged that he had authorised those discussions to take place.
"I do not question the negotiations themselves. The issue is that they involved policy matters which should first have been brought before Perikatan's supreme council.
"Instead, the negotiations were conducted without involving all component parties and without the mandate of the supreme council. Only after a decision on cooperation had been made was it brought before the supreme council," he claimed.
Muhyiddin also slammed Perikatan chairman Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar for making negotiations with Barisan.
"Just because Perikatan under PAS leadership seeks to ally with Umno, a party that still has ties with Pakatan Harapan, including DAP, PAS now wants to sever ties with Bersatu, sidelining the Malay party that I lead.
"This is not genuine Malay unity. It is merely a realignment of political power. Nevertheless, I wish Perikatan all the best.
"Bersatu will not look back. The party will continue to stand firm and move forward, carrying the banner of its struggle for the sake of Malaysia and all its people," Muhyiddin said.
