KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 22 — Perikatan Nasional’s (PN) Supreme Council will convene for an extraordinary meeting at 3pm today at the PAS headquarters in the city.
PN — the main Opposition bloc — is expected to appoint a new chairman on Sunday, nearly two months after Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin resigned from the post.
PAS is touted to take over the reins from Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) as the leader of the coalition and has reportedly obtained the approval of other members Gerakan and the Malaysian Indian People’s Party (MIPP).
Bersatu has led PN since the coalition’s inception in February 2020, after the ouster of the first Pakatan Harapan government that made Muhyiddin the country’s eighth prime minister.
However, PAS remains the lynchpin of PN as it controls 43 seats in the Dewan Rakyat and is the single largest party in the august house.
The Islamist party also helms the Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu state governments.
Meanwhile, Bersatu had 25 parliamentary seats, but following the latest round of expulsions, the party is down to 21 seats. It has also led the Perlis state government since December 2025.
How did it come to this?
A leadership fallout transpired in PN after five Bersatu assemblymen and three from PAS withdrew their support for the PAS-led government in Perlis last December.
While PAS immediately sacked the three assemblymen involved, Bersatu did not do so, although the party’s leadership denied any role in orchestrating the ouster.
The new Perlis state government was subsequently led by Kuala Perlis assemblyman and Bersatu member, Abu Bakar Hamzah.
Muhyiddin stepped down as PN chairman on January 1, followed by the coalition secretary-general Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali, to ease escalating tensions between PAS and Bersatu after the Perlis debacle.
Muhyiddin also mooted to abolish the chairman post as part of a structural overhaul in PN but PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang flatly rejected the idea.
The Hamzah conundrum
Bersatu, already mired in a months-long internal strife, finally sacked its deputy president Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin and 16 party leaders aligned with him last Friday.
Defending the expulsions, Muhyiddin claimed the measure was necessary to “save the party” and that he had endured years of “internal sabotage”.
Hamzah retaliated by launching the “Reset” movement on Saturday, declaring an all-out war against Muhyiddin’s leadership.
The Opposition Leader claimed that he commands the support of 19 Bersatu MPs — including Bersatu vice-president Datuk Seri Ronald Kiandee (Beluran MP) and women’s chief Datuk Mas Ermieyati Samsudin (Masjid Tanah MP) — and a majority of PN lawmakers.
Several Bersatu divisions also dissolved and many division chiefs also resigned last week, citing a loss of confidence in Muhyiddin.
Interestingly, PAS deputy president Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man has expressed the party’s “sympathy” for Hamzah despite its initial stance to steer clear of Bersatu’s internal affairs.
Similarly, PAS secretary-general Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan said the party is willing to accept Hamzah if he submits a formal application.
Although Hamzah has not ruled out the possibility of joining PAS, he is also keeping other options open — including forming a new party or “finding a new home in an old party”.
It is worth noting that Hamzah was formerly an Umno strongman and served in former prime ministers Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s Cabinets, prior to entering Bersatu in 2019.
What to expect at today’s extraordinary meeting
Takiyuddin has laid out two agendas for Sunday’s meeting: approving Muhyiddin’s resignation and appointing his successor from PAS.
Hadi, 78, has previously declined the chairmanship and PAS confirmed last month that he will not be nominated for the post.
Some big names tipped for the role include Terengganu Menteri Besar and PAS vice-president Datuk Seri Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar.
A closed-door meeting between Samsuri and Muhyiddin, which reportedly took place with Hadi’s blessings last month, has fuelled the speculation.
Hamzah’s position as Opposition Leader is also likely to be deliberated at the meeting.
Hamzah remains confident that he can continue leading the Opposition without having to call for a vote — but observers will be watching his seat closely when the Dewan Rakyat reconvenes after the Chinese New Year break on February 23.
