KUALA LUMPUR – Bersatu information chief Datuk Tun Faisal Ismail Aziz said the party was not attacking PAS by calling it deaf, as the exchange of statements by leaders from both sides deepens the rift between the two Perikatan Nasional (PN) component parties.
Tun Faisal also rejected assertions made previously by PAS leaders, that Bersatu has “more candidates than machinery.
“That is a lie,” he said on Facebook.
He said there are those who have “accused and slandered Bersatu” and refuse to listen to explanation given by the party’s leaders.
“But it’s not PAS.
“I don’t think it’s aimed at PAS. Perhaps it’s certain individuals who deliberately do not want to listen to the explanations given by Bersatu leaders,” Tun Faisal said.
His post comes after PAS information chief Ahmad Fadhli Shaari earlier today said it was better for PAS and Bersatu not to cooperate for elections.
Ahmad Fadhli had taken issue with Bersatu calling those who said it had no election machinery as being deaf. He implied that it was Bersatu who was deaf, or ignoring its own weaknesses.
The Pasir Mas MP also questioned Bersatu’s claims regarding the strength of its grassroots network and election machinery, arguing that the party remains weaker than it portrays itself to be.
His post echoes similar criticisms by PAS president Tan Sri Hadi Awang in the past, that Bersatu had demanded to contest in a high number of seats but lacked campaign machinery on the ground. PAS, as the larger and more structured party, has been relied on to provide workers and volunteers for PN candidates in recent elections.
Hadi earlier this month said PAS would review its ties with Bersatu.
Analysts, however, have observed that Bersatu cannot survive alone and will need to collaborate with a bigger party for the general election. – May 31, 2026