Gerakan president Dominic Lau said he had a good, long-standing relationship with Hamzah given the key role the former Bersatu deputy president played after PN’s formation in 2020.

“We had no problem working with Hazmah, from when he was the PN secretary-general to the PN deputy chairman.

“We have faced general elections, state elections, and by-elections with all four PN components… and have forged a close relationship as a result,” he said, according to Utusan Malaysia.

Lau, a PN deputy chairman, added that Gerakan would welcome Hamzah’s new party to PN as long as it shared the same ideologies.

However, he said its application to join the opposition coalition must go through the set procedures, pointing out that Pejuang had also applied to join PN but had yet to receive the green light.

Hamzah, who was sacked from Bersatu in February at the height of a bitter leadership tussle with party president Muhyiddin Yassin, previously confirmed plans to take over Parti Keluarga Malaysia, which has yet to be formally registered.

Two days ago, the Larut MP hinted at ditching the takeover plan, saying he might join one of the other three PN components.

The parties in PN are Bersatu, PAS, Gerakan and the Malaysian Indian People’s Party.