SEREMBAN, Sept 15 — Umno and PAS would not have come together to establish a political partnership if the former had not lost power in the first place, Negri Sembilan DAP chairman Anthony Loke Siew Fook said yesterday.

Loke said when Umno was in power, PAS was constantly lamenting that they were being sidelined by the then Umno-led ruling government, but now they seemed to have found themselves in a ‘marriage’.

"The cooperation between Umno dan PAS is definitely a politically one, we know this and have expected that they will collaborate as this is the only way to remain relevant and strengthen their political base to challenge Pakatan Harapan (PH).

"When I was in Terengganu and Kelantan to deliver talks, PAS leaders were always lamenting that Kelantan and Terengganu were being neglected by Umno… So this is a survival strategy for Umno and PAS as Umno have now lost power. If they had not, they would not have even think of cooperating with PAS,” he said after attending a Tanglung Festival event in Sungai Ujung Walk here yesterday.

Loke was commenting on Umno and PAS’ signing of a political cooperation charter called the National Consensus Charter in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

Elaborating further, Loke, who is also transport minister, said PAS supporters must come to a realisation as to why Umno was yesterday willing to work with them.

He added that what was important now was for PH to focus on its aspirations to unite and empower the people.

"We know about their (Umno-PAS) slander about how PH purportedly sidelined the struggles and agendas of the Malays and how DAP is allegedly behind this, but the truth remains that the country’s top leadership comprise Malays, the institutions are led by Malays, the Malay agenda remains as it is. It is just that we want to ensure the rights of all races are protected,” he said.

He stressed that the goals and aims of PH’s struggles were to ensure all Malaysians prosper together.

"This morning we had a special Cabinet meeting to discuss a prosperity concept that is visionary, that strives for shared prosperity and not just fighting for any one race. The vision is for every Malaysian to benefit, to prosper and move forward together as a nation,” he said.

Umno dan PAS yesterday signed a political cooperation charter — the National Consensus Charter to mark the start of a political collaboration between the two parties. — Bernama