Tawfik Yaakub of Universiti Malaya said recent remarks by Bersatu information chief Tun Faisal Ismail Aziz were aimed at projecting a stable image by retaining loyalists who maintained party discipline.
“From the perspective of a political organisation, such an approach does indeed reduce internal conflict and will make it easier for the party to move as a unit come an election,” he told FMT.
However, Tawfik said Bersatu risked losing its own checks and balances.
“If critics are viewed as a threat or disloyal, Bersatu will lose its dynamism and will not be able to adapt to shifts in public sentiment,” he said.
He added that Bersatu, as a relatively young party, needed diverse ideas, technocrats, and grassroots leaders to expand.
He said an exodus of high-profile leaders or the removal of such individuals could reduce Bersatu’s influence at the national level.
“They may be stable, but this does not guarantee that it will attract support.”
On Sunday, Tun Faisal said there was more room in Bersatu now for loyal leaders and those with integrity, following the disciplinary action recently taken against several leaders.
He said the sackings, suspensions, and warnings meted out by the Bersatu disciplinary board were the right move to ensure that leaders toe the party line and comply with its constitution.
This came after Bersatu sacked and suspended several assemblymen for breaching the party constitution and its code of conduct and ethics.
Some of them claimed they were given the boot because of their close ties with Hamzah Zainudin, who was sacked from Bersatu in February at the height of a leadership tussle with party president Muhyiddin Yassin.
Ahmad Zaharuddin Sani Ahmad Sabri of Global Asia Consulting said Tun Faisal’s call for Umno to take in Bersatu’s “problematic” leaders gave the impression that the two Malay-based parties were competing for the community’s votes.
Zaharuddin said if Umno decided to open its doors to these former Bersatu leaders, it would give the impression that the party led by Ahmad Zahid Hamidi was desperate.