The political turmoil engulfing Pakatan Rakyat (PR) went up a few notches after PAS delegates unanimously passed a motion to sever the party's ties with the DAP, whilst remaining in the coalition.

The motion, which was tabled by the party's Dewan Ulama at its 61st congress or muktamar, was ample proof that PAS was ready to take risks for the sake of upholding its Islamic principles.

Its PR ally DAP had flayed the outcome of the PAS elections on June 4, saying that the party had regressed following the defeat of the candidates representing the professional group to the ulamas or religious scholars.

In fact, some of its leaders had been vociferous in suggesting that PAS part company with the opposition coalition.

Discord anticipated

Consequent to the passing of the motion, the signs of discord between the PAS ulama and professional factions became even more apparent, although party President Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang denied the existence of dissension within the party in his policy speech at the muktamar's opening.

According to political analysts, the differences in opinion were expected, more so after the pro-ulama group trounced the professionals in the elections for all the top leadership posts at the Dewan Ulama, as well as the Youth and Wanita wings.

Of late, some of the defeated PAS leaders, as well as newly elected ones, had made sarcastic remarks pertaining to the new line-up of leaders, thus giving the impression that they were not all that happy with the decision taken by the majority of the 1,189 delegates who took part in the polls.

Despite the existence of "chai" or list of favoured candidates (usually circulated by close supporters of the candidates vying for the top party posts), it was not the main factor which led to the downfall of the professionals, according to political analysts.

They were crushed simply because they were neither loyal to nor in alignment with the party president and the Syura Council.

Meanwhile, Che Hamdan Che Mohd Razali, a senior political science lecturer at Universiti Teknologi MARA's Dungun, Terengganu, campus, said this time around a "real" conflict has emerged between PAS and the DAP.

"In the early stages, there was some semblance of a drama when the Sarawak and Sabah state DAP cut off their ties with PAS, in what appeared to be an election strategy (especially for Sarawak DAP).

"Now, however, the attacks have intensified to the extent of DAP sacking Penang civil service staff who represented PAS. It's obvious that their conflict is not going to end anytime soon," he told Bernama.

It was reported on Sunday that the DAP-led administration in Penang had sacked state information officer Mohd Fadzil Kemi, who is also Penang PAS Secretary, effective last Friday.

More pressure from DAP

The Dewan Ulama's motion had obviously offended the DAP, which retaliated by demanding the resignation of PAS members who worked for the Penang state government.

Last Thursday, DAP Secretary-General Lim Guan Eng was reported as saying that it was disgraceful that the new PAS leaders seemed reluctant to order party members to resign from their posts in the Penang civil service.

So far, only three PAS representatives in Penang - former deputy president Mohamad Sabu, former Central Working Committee member Datuk Dr Mujahid Yusof Rawa and state information chief Rosidi Hussai have relinquished their state government posts.

Mohamad has stepped down from the Penang Water Supply Corporation and Penang International Halal Hub's board of directors; Mujahid from the Penang Islamic Foundation and Penang Islamic and Technological College's board of directors; and Rosidi, as director of the Penang Youth Development Corporation.

The DAP's retaliation can, at best, be described as impetuous as the motion passed by the PAS delegates did not constitute the party's official stand on whether or not it wanted to sever ties with its PR partner.

PAS Spiritual Leader Datuk Dr Haron Din was reported to have said that his party would not bow down to pressure from the DAP to get its members to resign from their jobs in the Penang civil service, stressing that PAS' struggle was not motivated by posts, but God's blessings.

Haron described the DAP's action as hasty, pointing out that the motion had yet to be approved by the Syura Council or the party's Central Working Committee.

What will become of Pakatan Rakyat?

In the absence of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who is currently in jail after being convicted of sodomising his former personal assistant Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, PAS-DAP ties had gone downhill.

Anwar had all along played the role of mediator and he was able to use his influence to retain both PAS and the DAP in the opposition coalition.

The question is, what is in store on the opposition front in view of the latest developments?

Che Hamdan said it was important for the public to realise that PR was not a registered organisation, unlike the Barisan Nasional (BN). Hence, PR's continued existence or dissolution depended on how serious the component parties were on staying united on account of their common goals.

"Throughout the history of this nation, the opposition parties have formed coalitions with names like Angkatan Perpaduan Ummah (APU), Barisan Alternatif (BA) and now, Pakatan Rakyat.

"If Pakatan Rakyat falls apart as a result of the ongoing crisis, for sure another coalition will crop up just before the next general election," he said.

Nation's political landscape

What are the implications for the nation's political landscape in the event the PR component parties decide to go separate ways?

Che Hamdan said one clear takeaway from the current political scenario was that Malaysia's opposition parties were inconsistent and not ready yet to provide a viable alternative to the BN.

He added that it was also obvious that Malaysian politics was still ruled by the element of race and religion, especially when it came to political parties securing the support of their respective members, and influencing them.

Commenting on a suggestion that Persatuan Ummah Sejahtera Malaysia (Pasma) be turned into a political party to replace PAS in the opposition coalition, Che Hamdan said Pasma, a non-governmental organisation, could not emulate PAS' role in the coalition.

Furthermore, he added, Pasma's founding members did not have the influence or clout to initiate a new political movement.

"Unless the defeated leaders of PAS join Pasma or they form a new party, it's hard to replace PAS. Pasma can't go far without them (former PAS leaders) and Pakatan Rakyat won't be complete without PAS," he added.