PETALING JAYA: PAS secretary-general Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan dismissed speculation that Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s absence at the 72nd PAS mukatmar signals the party will contest the Melaka state election alone.
According to Sinar Harian, Takiyuddin said that political negotiations between PAS and Umno were still ongoing and he was directly involved in the process.
Takiyuddin said the assumption was unfounded as discussions between the parties would likely resume “in a day or two”.
“Not at all, not at all. I can confirm that because I am among those directly involved. We will continue our negotiations, probably in a day or two,” he said.
He said this at a press conference after the 72nd PAS annual muktamar at the Kelantan Islamic Education Centre (Putik) in Pengkalan Chepa on Saturday.
Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki had led an Umno delegation to the opening of the PAS muktamar when Ahmad Zahid, as the Umno president, could not make it due to “unavoidable reasons”.
Asyraf had also said that PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang was expected to attend the upcoming Umno general assembly.
Takiyuddin added that Perikatan Nasional would hold a meeting this month to discuss efforts to strengthen political cooperation, with preparations for the Melaka poll and strategy reviews ahead of the next general election (GE16) among the main agenda.
Takiyuddin also said PAS remained confident that the relationship between Perikatan and Barisan Nasional was on a good track, but clarified that no negotiations involving Pakatan Harapan or PKR were part of the current cooperation talks.
The convention approved four main motions, including the ummah unification motion, which was among the focus of debate throughout the party convention.
In a reciprocal move, PAS confirmed it would attend the 2026 Umno general assembly starting Sept 9 at the World Trade Centre (WTC) in Kuala Lumpur, with Takiyuddin saying he was among four top party leaders scheduled to attend.
“We are confident that this is an emphasis from the Umno president himself and he described this as the agenda to us. We are invited and we will attend,” he said.
PAS deputy president Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man also confirmed accepting the official invitation, adding that the final list of delegates would be decided later.
Tuan Ibrahim had earlier described the current arrangement between PAS and Barisan as political cooperation rather than a formal merger, citing the Negri Sembilan and Johor models as possible templates for Melaka.
He noted PAS had directed its members to support Barisan candidates in seats not contested by Perikatan, while both parties remain separate entities, adding that all political cooperation decisions are scrutinised and referred to PAS’ Majlis Syura Ulama before finalisation.
