“Amanah must redeem its dignity tonight,” the former minister, a vocal opponent of PAS’ policies, told FMT.
He urged Amanah to place “as many candidates as possible” in Selangor, the state which could test the popularity of the four-party PH coalition, after PAS vowed to force three-way contests against Barisan Nasional (BN) at the next polls.
Zaid said it was time for Amanah leaders to make known their stand on wooing their former party.
“Amanah must declare it is not with PKR on this. It is better that Amanah does not disappoint the people even if it means losing the battle, but at the same time does not become a laughing stock,” said Zaid, a former PKR member who joined DAP this year.
Zaid said PKR leaders had sidelined Amanah since its inception in 2015, soon after former PAS leaders were purged from PAS after disagreeing with the party’s new policy of engagement with Umno.
“PKR leaders have belittled them for far too long because the party is confident with PAS as a partner at the 14th general election,” he said.
On Saturday, PKR deputy president Mohamed Azmin Ali denied he had acted alone in negotiations with PAS, saying it was a party decision.
Azmin and party president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail also recently met PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang, fuelling speculations of a tie-up between the two parties despite officially ending their political cooperation last May.
It is widely seen as part of efforts by PKR to woo PAS, hoping that a change of mind by the Islamist party would prevent three-cornered fights in Selangor, where PKR has been leading a coalition government made up of PAS and DAP since 2008.
But the move did not sit well with some PKR leaders, including Selayang MP William Leong, who recently announced his resignation from the party’s political bureau, the top decision-making body in PKR.
Zaid, who has been a vocal advocate of Amanah to replace PAS, recently took the PH campaign to Kelantan with PH and PPBM chairman Dr Mahathir Mohamad, another staunch critic of PAS.
In several tweets today, he urged PH leaders meeting tonight to be firm against any attempt to undermine the coalition, adding that they “must learn the meaning of sacrifice before they ask the same from the Rakyat”
“Don’t destroy people’s hope by allowing PKR to go on its frolic with PAS,” he said.