KUALA LUMPUR, June 14 — PAS yesterday endorsed Parti Wawasan Negara’s bid to join Perikatan Nasional (PN), as party president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang said Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia was free to decide whether it wanted to remain in the Opposition coalition.

According to Harian Metro, Hadi said PAS was open to accepting Parti Wawasan Negara into PN and that the majority of the coalition’s component parties had agreed to the move in line with its constitution.

“PAS supports and accepts Parti Wawasan Negara joining PN.

“The cooperation between PAS and Parti Wawasan Negara is not a new alignment; rather, we are strengthening what already exists. We will further energise PN,” he told reporters after the RESET Convention in Tanah Merah, Kelantan, yeserday.

Also present were Gerakan president Datuk Dominic Lau, Reset movement founder Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin, PN chairman Datuk Seri Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar and Kelantan Menteri Besar Datuk Mohd Nassuruddin Daud.

Hadi added that PAS remained committed to strengthening PN, noting that the coalition’s current chairman was from the Islamist party.

“PAS agrees to accept Parti Wawasan Negara into PN because PAS is open. It is after the majority of component parties, in accordance with the constitution, agreed to accept Parti Wawasan Negara.

“The process is that when a party wishes to apply to join PN, it must submit an application and we will bring the matter to a meeting,” he said, as reported by the national daily.

Asked about Bersatu’s position in PN, Hadi said the matter was for the party itself to decide.

“We have already parted ways with Bersatu and it is up to that party whether it wants to leave or walk away because that is its own matter,” he said.

The development comes after PAS officially decided to end its political cooperation with Bersatu on June 8.

Speaking at the same convention earlier, Hamzah, who is the Larut MP, announced that he and the RESET movement would operate under Parti Wawasan Negara, describing it as a platform for cooperation with PAS and other like-minded parties.

“Many people have asked me which party I, together with RESET, will be under. Here, I wish to announce that I will be with Parti Wawasan Negara.

“The name was given by Ayah Chik (Abdul Hadi).

“This party has just been born and is still taking its first steps. We want to work together with PAS, Gerakan and other parties. Insya-Allah, we will come together to build a consensus,” he said.

KUALA LUMPUR, June 14 — PAS said Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin's return as Opposition Leader had long been its preferred outcome, adding that Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia had previously been uncomfortable with him remaining in the role following his expulsion from the party.

Berita Harian reported that PAS deputy president Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man said the Islamist party had wanted to retain Hamzah in the role from the outset because of his performance and the support he commanded among Opposition lawmakers.

“Actually, from the very beginning, we wanted to retain Datuk Seri Hamzah because of his performance and because many MPs were with him. It was just that Bersatu was not particularly comfortable with Hamzah’s position at the time, as he had been expelled from the party.

“So when he formed a new party (Parti Wawasan Negara) and joined us (PAS), we thought we should continue to retain him (as Opposition Leader),” Tuan Ibrahim told reporters after a pre-election ceramah at the PAS operations centre in Seremban last night.

According to the national daily, Tuan Ibrahim said the arrangement had already been agreed upon before PAS vice-president Datuk Seri Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar was appointed PN chairman in February, after Bersatu president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin stepped aside from the position.

Hamzah had relinquished the role after being expelled from Bersatu, with Ahmad Samsuri succeeding him as Opposition Leader following PN's Supreme Council meeting on May 16.

Tuan Ibrahim added that Hamzah’s decision to establish Parti Wawasan Negara and align himself with PAS meant the issue was no longer tied to Bersatu.

“Because he formed a new party and is with us, we decided to retain him once again,” he said.

Yesterday, PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang announced that Hamzah, who is also the Larut MP, would return as Opposition Leader during the RESET convention in Tanah Merah, Kelantan.

Hadi said PAS and the RESET movement had agreed to retain Hamzah in the role, adding that the decision had been reached through consultation within PAS and among MPs.

KUALA LUMPUR, June 14 — Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said new Malay-based political parties were welcome, provided they helped unite rather than further divide the community.

Speaking after the Majlis Zikir Peringatan Haul Asmaulhusna 2026 at Masjid Sultan Iskandar in Bandar Dato’ Onn, Johor Bahru, today, the Barisan Nasional chairman said any individual or political figure was free to establish a new party as long as it helped unite Malays rather than deepen existing divisions.

“We welcome any individual or figure, on the condition that we unite our thinking and do not continue to be divided among ourselves.

“Whatever platform is used, if in the end we are able to unite our actions around the national agenda, the Islamic agenda and the agenda of our community, insya-Allah.

“We will be able to lend our support because we have also come together through dialogues and discussions under the national collaboration initiative that we have undertaken,” he said, as reported by Berita Harian.

Ahmad Zahid, who is also Umno president, said differences in opinion should be channelled into advancing national interests, Islamic causes and the welfare of future generations, without sidelining other races and religions in the country.

He added that Umno’s Rumah Bangsa initiative had succeeded in promoting national unity.

His remarks came a day after Reset chairman Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin announced that the movement would operate under a new party known as Parti Wawasan Negara as part of efforts to strengthen political cooperation across different blocs in the country.

Hamzah reportedly said the party had been established as a platform for unity and would work with PAS and other like-minded parties to build a more comprehensive political understanding.