The Malaysian Insight

WITHOUT Gerakan, the Perikatan Nasional (PN) would only be an all-Malay coalition, party president Dominic Lau said.

“A PN that only has Bersatu and PAS makes it an all-Malay coalition. But with the addition of Gerakan, PN is more diverse,” the head of the former Barisan Nasional party said in an interview with The Malaysian Insight.

Although each party within PN has its own ideology, each is able to defend its rights accordingly, he said.

“Each political party in Perikatan is allowed to defend its own religion and race, provided that it does not harm other races and religions.

“As such, Gerakan is the mediating role in each of the Perikatan meetings,” said Lau of the party made up of various ethnicities.

He said Gerakan’s contribution to PN is its focus on multi-ethnic matters, while PAS is left to focus on Islamic issues.

Bersatu, which is headed by PN chairman and former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin, is also a Malay party.

Lau said there is no problem being in league with the Islamist PAS, which was Barisan’s enemy in the past when Gerakan was part of that coalition.

He said the leaders of different parties in PN have no problems with each other but what needs to be improved is cooperation and connection at the grassroots level.

He also said he didn’t see a problem with the PAS-led Kedah banning gaming outlets in the state.

Last November, Kedah Mentri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor said that the state government will no longer issue or renew business licences for gaming outlets in the state.

The Kedah government said it also planned to review the sale of duty-free alcohol in Langkawi. – January 29, 2022.