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Without doubt, one of Umno's aims in seeking a merger with Pas is to destabilise Anwar by splitting Pas from Pakatan. How far this strategy would work remains to be seen. But the intentions are clear. The Malay ethnic card is being played to create a political landscape less friendly to Anwar. The Straits Times
There is a new shadow play being performed in Perak and elsewhere in Malaysia. Some Pas and Umno members are said to have met to seek a unified front. Pas leaders, who reaffirmed their loyalty to the opposition coalition, have denied this. Of course, this denial only reinforces the dominant theme in Malaysian shadow-play politics. Nothing is to be believed until the buried truth surfaces. There are three elements to this latest twist that are worth pondering. First is the return to Malay ethnicity as the core issue. This is surprising because, for the past decade at least, attention has been riveted on Islam and Islamisation. Second is the necessity to focus on class as a critical element in understanding the current storyline. And finally, the whole idea of what constitutes ethnicity- based politics has been turned on its head by the emergence of the opposition coalition Pakatan Rakyat at the expense of the ruling Barisan National coalition, and the possibility of the reconstitution of Malay ethnic solidarity. Of particular importance is the question of who can now claim to best represent the interests of the Malays. Pas has always portrayed itself to be more Islamic than Malay, and Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's Parti Keadilan Rakyat has billed itself as a multi-racial party. In the current shadow play, ethnic identity appears to have become a more important element than religion. So we must ask: where has all the religion gone? Certainly it has not re-emerged in the opposition. The DAP, PKR and Pas — the component parties of Pakatan Rakyat — make strange bedfellows. And this has led to many disagreements as to how Pakatan Rakyat should share its new and unexpected political portfolio in Perak and elsewhere. Seeking to exploit this, Umno has sought to divide the opposition and seek an accommodation with its rival, Pas. Their respective degrees of religiosity as an issue has become less of a concern to Umno. Being Malay, the ethnic dimension, is the major consideration that it is pursuing. But beyond the issue of Malay identity, there are more fundamental socio-economic and class issues. There appears to be a deep-seated resentment against Umno's perceived creation of a narrow class of wealthy Malays. Upwardly mobile urban Malays have often voiced concerns that the economic largesse reserved for Malays has been usurped by this thin segment of wealthy elites. Likewise, rural Malays have felt ignored and abandoned. As a result, the tectonic plates of Malay support shifted during the last election. Umno is now attempting to cope with the after-shocks. It is in this context that Umno is now seeking a new alliance with Pas. Umno's long period in power and Pas's standing in Kelantan have been a study in contrasts. Pas has shown how a party with a religious ideology can run a state reasonably well without having to loosen the purse strings at every turn. That has been showcased to the Malay population. An Umno-Pas alliance would render the contrasts less stark — one reason why the alliance is being resisted by some Pas leaders. Without doubt, one of Umno's aims in seeking a merger with Pas is to destabilise Anwar by splitting Pas from Pakatan. How far this strategy would work remains to be seen. But the intentions are clear. The Malay ethnic card is being played to create a political landscape less friendly to Anwar. The non-Malay population in Perak and elsewhere would have the most to lose if an Umno-Pas alliance were to transpire. The desire for a better alternative to BN would be curtailed and there would be a return to business as usual. The ethnic divide that was tenuously bridged after the last election is precarious at best. An opportunity to create a less ethnic-driven political framework would have been lost. Malays, even in Pakatan, retain a “special position” in Malaysian politics. In Perak, for instance, the logic of numbers would suggest that the DAP, with 18 seats in the state legislature, should be in the driver's seat. Instead, the menteri besar, the head of the state government, is from Pas, which has only six seats. In Malay politics, nothing is ever as it appears. Nevertheless, the recent pronouncement by Pas in Perak that there will be no merger with Umno is a sign, perhaps, that the ideological divide between them is as strong as ever. But one can never assume that ideology has no price. Shadow plays can sometimes be expensive, but that has never restrained Umno before. Finally, we come to the position of Anwar, a principal dalang or puppet master in the current play. Logic would dictate that an Umno-Pas alliance would weaken his position. But before we come to that conclusion, let us look at one other possible scenario. What if ethnic-based politics turns to a new type of grand coalition of Malay parties — Pas, Umno and perhaps even PKR? This new supra-Malay party would require new or existing satellite Chinese and Indian parties. Perhaps the chief dalang has yet another surprise in store for his audience. The current Pas-Umno shadow play may be the prelude to an even more thrilling master plot. Or, then again, perhaps not. We will know only when the curtain falls on this latest performance.
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The Blogs 
NO MORE. PAS has reaffirmed their decision by standing fast to the PR struggle. If an if PAS joins UMNO, it would be the beginning of their downfall, one way ticket to oblivion and they know it.