PETALING JAYA: Selangor voters can evaluate whether PAS is capable of governing the economic powerhouse based on the Islamic party’s track record with the four Perikatan Nasional (PN)-led states or the SG4, says an analyst.
Akademi Nusantara’s Azmi Hassan said the economic achievements and performance of Perlis, Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu under PAS rule were real-life benchmarks for voters in Selangor, which the Islamic party is hoping to wrest from Pakatan Harapan (PH).
“Selangor voters can consider what the PAS menteris besar and other leaders of these states have done, as well as how long PAS has governed them and what direction they’re headed in.
“Are any of them headed in the direction of potentially challenging Selangor’s (economic standing)?” he told FMT.
Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu are currently governed by PAS while the Islamic party led the Perlis administration from November 2022 to December 2025.
Selangor has been led by PH since 2008, when the coalition was known as Pakatan Rakyat, which PAS was a component of until 2015.
Analysts previously said a Barisan Nasional (BN)-PN pact could challenge PH’s dominance in Selangor as the two coalitions could consolidate Malay votes and wrest the state.
On Sunday, PAS election director Sanusi Nor said wresting the Selangor government from PH would be key to ousting the coalition from Putrajaya in the 16th general election.
Selangor PKR deputy youth chief Shahrul Adnan subsequently challenged the PN component to present an alternative budget if it was serious about taking over the state government.
This was dismissed as unnecessary by PAS president Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man, who pointed to the party’s experience in governing the other states it leads.
Syaza Shukri of International Islamic University Malaysia said a concrete policy plan would be able to convince more voters, the business community and investors about Selangor’s direction in the event that PAS comes to power there.
However, she said PAS’s focus was on mobilising supporters who had already swung towards the party, and not for the policies it stands for.
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia’s Mazlan Ali meanwhile said a policy plan was crucial for PAS as the Malay electorate in Selangor differed from their counterparts in other states.
While a BN-PN alliance could consolidate Malay votes, he said most Malay voters in Selangor lived in urban and semi-urban areas, and would prioritise practical aspects such as the economy, housing, transport and education.
“As a developed state, it would be quite challenging for PAS to wrest Selangor from PH because the Malays in urban areas are educated and different than the Malays in other states,” he said.
