PAS deputy president Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man said no decision was ever made to allow parties under Ikatan Prihatin Rakyat (IPR) to contest under the PN banner, as proposed by Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin for the upcoming Melaka state election.

“This issue has never been discussed in any official meeting, and we only allow members to contest using the PN logo.

“IPR’s component members are not part of PN, so how can we allow it? They have never applied to become component members of PN,” he told FMT.

Yesterday, Muhyiddin said that parties under IPR could contest in the Melaka state election using PN’s logo. He also said these parties could negotiate with a “PN-level committee” for the seats they were keen on contesting.

However, Tuan Ibrahim, who is also PN deputy chairman, denied that such a committee exists.

Meanwhile, PAS treasurer Iskandar Abdul Samad said that Muhyiddin no longer has the authority to make decisions regarding matters such as the use of the coalition’s logo, as he is no longer PN chairman.

Muhyiddin resigned from the position on Jan 1, and was succeeded by PAS vice-president Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar.

Commenting on IPR’s position, Iskandar described the loose coalition as an ad hoc platform created to discuss only certain issues.

“If Muhyiddin is proposing that parties under the IPR contest using the PN logo, it would be better to give the Reset team (led by Hamzah Zainudin) the opportunity to contest under the PN banner instead.

“Hamzah’s team appears to have stronger support,” he said.