Strength in Malay Belt not enough to make Samsuri PM, says PAS man

2026-03-18 - 01:30

PAS treasurer Iskandar Abdul Samad said Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar’s appointment as PN chairman signals that he is the coalition’s prime ministerial candidate. (Facebook pic) PETALING JAYA: Strength in the east coast and the so-called Malay Belt alone will not be enough for Perikatan Nasional (PN) to succeed in taking over the federal government, says PAS treasurer Iskandar Abdul Samad. In a Facebook post, Iskandar said that while PN, particularly PAS, might appear to be on solid ground in Kelantan and Terengganu and influential in Kedah as well as parts of Perak, this did not guarantee success at the national level. “Just because we have won all the seats (in our strongholds) does not yet guarantee that we have made Dr Sam (Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar) the prime minister,” he said, adding that the Terengganu menteri besar’s appointment as PN chairman signalled that he was the coalition’s prime ministerial candidate. Iskandar said that Johor, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Selangor, Pahang, Perak, Penang, Perlis, Sabah, and Sarawak must also become PN strongholds if the coalition truly wished to wrest control of Putrajaya in the next general election (GE16). He also said that the current political landscape required comprehensive cooperation across all states, as success in one area would not translate into national victory if allies continued to lag. “We live in a time where our efforts are interconnected and we cannot operate in silos, working without regard for others. “We cannot take pride in what we have achieved while our partners struggle. The failure of our allies will also lead to bigger failures for us,” he said. Samsuri, who is also a PAS vice-president, replaced Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin as PN chairman on Feb 22. The appointment positioned Samsuri as a potential prime minister aspirant for GE16, backed by PAS Youth and other quarters. However, Muhyiddin said the chairmanship was no guarantee that one would become the coalition’s prime ministerial candidate.