PAS wooing NGO activists for GE14

Party aims to rope them in to contest on its ticket to take control of Putrajaya

KOTA BARU: PAS wants to rope in activists at NGOs to contest in the upcoming 14th general election on its ticket.

This is part of the Islamist party’s strategy to strengthen its third force, called Gagasan Sejahtera (Concept of Peace), that will challenge Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Harapan in multi-cornered battles to wrest control of Putrajaya.

PAS secretary-general Datuk Takiyuddin Hassan said it would also look into allocating seats to fellow component parties of Gagasan Sejahtera.

“We have a pool of respected community figures who can be fielded in the upcoming general election,” he said.

Gagasan Sejahtera is a newly established coalition comprising PAS and Parti Ikatan Bangsa Malaysia.

PAS vice-president Datuk Mohd Amar Nik Abdullah said Parti Cinta Malaysia and Parti Berjasa have yet to officially join the coalition.

However, he said the coalition has the backing of more than 300 NGOs.

Takiyuddin is confident of PAS’ capability to change the political landscape because it has strong grassroots support in 195 of the 222 parliamentary constituencies.

“We have more than 7,000 branches nationwide and close to a million members.

“Our membership is expanding steadily, we receive an average of 3,500 new applications monthly.

“We are gaining stronger support in the Malay heartland after we cut ties with DAP,” he said during a ceramah in Rantau Panjang to celebrate the 27th anniversary of its “developing with Islam” policy in Kelantan.

In another development, Pertubuhan Pribumi Perkasa Malaysia (Perkasa) president Datuk Ibrahim Ali predicted that PAS will lose Kelantan in the next general election because it has failed to bring progress despite being given the mandate for 27 years.

“I foresee a tsunami in Kelantan, as PAS has lost its aura after the death of Tok Guru Allahyarham Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat,” Ibrahim said.

He said people have started talking about the incapability of the PAS government to find new sources of revenue for the state.

“The PAS government only knows how to generate revenue through logging.

“There are not much job opportunities here.

“People are leaving the state in search of jobs,” he said.

We have more than 7,000 branches nationwide and close to a million members.

Datuk Takiyuddin Hassan