Kamaruzaman Mohamad said the party would take into account the political situation in the country and its “needs” before deciding on whether it would contest under the PN banner in GE15, Sinar Harian reported.

He said the Islamist party’s decision to contest under PN was not something that should be debated about as the party was a member of the coalition.

“We have a choice to contest under our own logo or PN’s,” the Malay daily quoted him as saying.

“PAS’ central committee made it clear that Monday night’s decision was only for the Melaka polls.”

In announcing the party’s decision last night, party president Abdul Hadi Awang said it was based on the advice of the party’s highest decision making body, the Syura Council, which met on Sunday.

The Syura Council was reported to have called for straight fights in Melaka after speculation that PAS might go it alone.

Kamaruzaman went on to say that the party’s decision did not mean it was severing ties with Umno, adding that it remained committed to Muafakat Nasional (MN), the political alliance the country’s two biggest Malay parties formed in 2019.

PAS’ decision, he said, was based on a political strategy that took into account various factors.

“We still regard MN as an important platform to strengthen unity,” he said, adding that any negotiations with Umno were only meant to prevent Pakatan Harapan from forming the Melaka state government.