Urimai chairman P Ramasamy said such a bloc could serve to consolidate the strength of the opposition, especially among Chinese and Indian voters, in anticipation of a more profound electoral shift in the next general election.
“While the Chinese and Indian communities may currently be cautious about fully backing the opposition, PN must take the initiative to engage with them meaningfully.
“It is only through mutual effort that both the non-Malay communities and PN can find common ground to overcome the Pakatan Harapan-led coalition,” he said in a statement.
Ramasamy’s statement comes after a meeting held by PN chairman Muhyiddin Yassin with leaders of several parties outside the government bloc yesterday evening.
Besides Ramasamy, others who attended included Pejuang president Mukhriz Mahathir, acting Muda president Amira Aisya Abdul Aziz, Putra president Ibrahim Ali, Parti Sosialis Malaysia deputy chairman S Arutchelvan and Malaysian Advancement Party president P Waytha Moorthy.
At the meeting, Ramasamy said Muhyiddin gathered diverse views on how to enhance the opposition’s appeal, particularly among the non-Malays.
“There was a collective recognition that both Bersatu and PAS need to adopt a more inclusive approach in strengthening ties with these communities,” he said.
“It was generally agreed that while the Indian community showed increasing receptiveness toward PN, the Chinese community remained hesitant, although disillusionment with the DAP appears to be growing.”
PSM’s Arutchelvan said although they welcomed the proposal, no decision had been made by the party to join the proposed grouping.
“Any decision for PSM to join a new coalition can only be made by the party’s congress, in line with its commitment to the principle of democratic centralism,” he said in a statement.
FMT earlier quoted analyst Azmi Hassan of Akademi Nusantara as saying that the small parties and groups Bersatu is seeking to ally with are not significant enough to attract more votes to help the opposition topple the government.
Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman’s Chin Yee Mun said non-Malays and non-Muslim voters would need more convincing to back the proposal.
United Opposition Front may still work
Ramasamy, in a separate statement, said whether the United Opposition Front succeeds or not will depend on a multitude of factors.
He said under present circumstances, PN is clearly weaker than the PH-led coalition. “However, political and social conditions are not static — they evolve, often rapidly.
“Politics is about a range of future possibilities. As one statesman remarked on the eve of a great revolution, the future belongs to the weak who comprise the majority.
“The timely formation of a unified front to bring both Malays and non-Malays under one political umbrella is a critical development in filling the existing lacuna.”