JOHOR BARU: Co-operation between Barisan Nasional and Perikatan Nasional is not a formal pact but merely a political understanding to avoid multi-cornered contests, says Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin.
The Umno vice-president said the understanding, forged for the Negri Sembilan election, was aimed at uniting the Malay community and did not involve a merger of the component parties in either coalition.
“This is a political understanding, not a coalition of political parties.
“The understanding we have reached at this stage is to ensure there are no clashes in the seats we contest.
“As such, the parties involved can continue to hold differing views, and that is not a problem because we are not merging,” he told reporters after opening the Pasir Gudang Umno division delegates’ meeting here yesterday.
Mohamed Khaled said the understanding was intended to prevent Barisan and Perikatan from contesting the same seats, thereby avoiding confusion among voters.
He noted that no such understanding existed during the recent Johor election, where Barisan and Perikatan contested against each other in several constituencies.
“Despite that, the Malay community consolidated its support by choosing Barisan and Umno in Johor.
“In Johor, that success was achieved through the Rumah Bangsa initiative, where fence-sitters and young voters largely backed Umno because they chose stability,” he said.
He added that Umno had once again become the consolidating force, or centre of gravity, for Malay support in the upcoming Negri Sembilan election.
He said that only time would tell how successful the political understanding would be in achieving its objective of uniting the Malay community.
He also stressed that no one should question the importance of unity and stability within the Malay community, saying it would benefit Malaysians of all races.
“As the majority community in the country, unity and stability among Malays are good for Malaysia.
“On the other hand, divisions among Malays could lead to divisions within the country,” he said.
He also sought to allay the concerns of other communities, saying Barisan, through Umno, had always ensured the participation of all races in the nation’s administration.
“We have long embraced diversity. Every community should have representation in the government,” he said.
“Umno and Barisan will continue to ensure the rights of other communities are respected and that they benefit from every policy implemented in accordance with the Federal Constitution.”
