KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 18 — The People’s Progressive Party (PPP) will chart a new direction under the theme Senada Sejiwa, with a focus on strengthening Barisan Nasional (BN) by bringing grassroots issues to the forefront, said PPP president Datuk Dr Loga Bala Mohan.

Welcoming the formal recognition of PPP as a component party of BN today, he said the approach reflects the party’s commitment to contribute more effectively to the coalition by amplifying the voices of the people and highlighting issues affecting communities at the ground level.

“Under the Senada Sejiwa theme, PPP aims to give the people a stronger voice and add value to BN by raising grassroots concerns in a more structured and inclusive manner,” he told Bernama when contacted.

Loga Bala stressed that PPP has been a BN component party since 1974, adding that today’s development represents a confirmation of the party’s long-standing position within the coalition rather than a re-entry.

Earlier today, BN chairman and Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, when officiating PPP’s 72nd annual general assembly at Dewan Merdeka, World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur, announced that PPP has now been formally recognised as a component party of the BN coalition.

Speaking in his capacity as BN chairman, Ahmad Zahid said the official recognition ceremony will take place during the BN Supreme Council meeting in Kota Kinabalu on Jan 21.

Later, during a press conference, Ahmad Zahid said that PPP will be a full component party of BN, adding that the coalition now comprises five component parties: UMNO, MCA, MIC, PBRS, and PPP.

Established in 1953, PPP later faced a prolonged leadership crisis that led to its deregistration by the Registrar of Societies (ROS) on Jan 14, 2019, following a dispute between the late Datuk Seri Maglin Dennis D’Cruz and Tan Sri M Kayveas.

The five-year crisis ended on April 11, 2023, when the Home Ministry approved the party’s appeal against deregistration and recognised the legitimacy of its Supreme Council.

Loga Bala said that PPP subsequently received official confirmation from ROS on Nov 3, 2025, affirming that the party continues to be a member of BN and has never withdrawn from the coalition.

The party currently has about 320,000 members nationwide, with 119 divisions and 3,119 branches. — Bernama