Daim, who has openly endorsed Pakatan Harapan (PH) chairman Dr Mahathir Mohamad and the coalition’s candidates, said in Kelantan, PAS leaders were seen as being too close to Umno.
In an interview with Nanyang Siang Pau, he said Umno had often taken advantage of PAS and then cast the Islamist party aside once it was no longer needed.
He added that PAS’ late spiritual leader Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat had disapproved of the close ties with Umno, and that the children of three former PAS leaders had recently chosen to leave.
“There are conflicts in the party,” he said. “The people (in Kelantan) cannot accept PAS as it is now.”
In Kedah and Perak, meanwhile, Daim said the right leaders could propel PH to victory.
He said if the campaigns of Mahathir in Kedah and his son Mukhriz Mahathir in Perak were handled properly, BN would likely lose.
On Tuesday, Daim made waves when he urged Malaysians to choose PH in the May 9 polls. He said this was to ensure a better future for the next generation, and expressed confidence that Mahathir would be able to resolve the country’s debts.
“On polling day, vote for the blue eye. Look for the blue eye, so we can open our eyes to see what is right and wrong.
“Not the ‘dacing’. The ‘dacing’ will cheat,” he said.
Daim, the former Merbok MP, served as finance minister under Mahathir from 1984 to 1991, and from 1999 to 2001.
In the interview with Nanyang Siang Pau, he said BN had a 50-50 chance of retaining Johor and Sabah, although he did not see the coalition wresting back Penang and Selangor.
He said PH would face a tough fight in Melaka but that it had a small chance of winning in Negeri Sembilan if it nominated the right candidate for menteri besar.
In the crown jewel of Putrajaya, he said an overall swing of 10% would be enough to usher in a new government, even without a “Malay tsunami”.
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