1MDB Najib to lead BN to win big in GE14?

1MDB Najib to lead BN to win big in GE14?

Is it almost game over for the Opposition, be it at a snap 14th General Election (GE14) or later?

It sure looks like it if the Islamist PAS vice-president Mohd Amar Nik Abdullah has it his way for GE14.

Malaysia’s national news agency Bernama on Aug 16, 2016, quoted Amar as saying “PAS will only allow PKR to contest in Kelantan”.

Amar said if the opposition parties wanted one-on-one fights against the Umno-led Barisan Nasional (BN) in GE14, they must give way to PAS and PKR to do so.

”Other parties should stay away,” he added.

He was responding to threats by Amanah, a splinter of PAS, that it might contest in Kelantan in GE14.

He also claimed that for now, Amanah did not pose any threat to PAS in Kelantan.

Is Amar "dangling" a crrot to ensure Kelantan remains PAS-led after GE14?

Opposition parties DAP, PKR and Amanah have formed a pact called Pakatan Harapan which came about after DAP and PAS had a fallout.

Another Malay-based party, almost identical to Umno, was also recently formed by factions aligned to former Umno president Dr Mahathir Mohamad who ruled Malaysia as prime minister for 22 years.

Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) is helmed by former Umno deputy president and Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin.

Bersatu’s political aim is to topple 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) Prime Minister Najib Razak via a general election.

This means Bersatu’s mission is also to help ensure the BN loses its mandate to govern Malaysia.

It is already sounding very clear the Opposition unity is deteriorating, to say the least, while the prospects of calling for a snap GE14 is looking very, very appealing politically, at least to Najib and Umno.

Umno then is expected to win big, due to a very fractured Opposition splitting votes, thereby giving a "deadly" edge to Umno and BN.

However, Amar’s statement did not mention PAS’ status on electoral pacts in all other states and federal territories.

If Amar’s statement is only for Kelantan, then there is still a very slim chance of Mahathir and Bersatu succeeding in forging united Opposition electoral pacts outside Kelantan.

One also wonders whether Amar’s statement is the “carrot” being dangled to enable PAS to retain its political stranglehold and continue governing the east coast Kelantan.

Besides the Hadi “pro-Umno” Awang-led PAS, the other Opposition parties are DAP, PKR, Amanah and Bersatu.

With such a crowded Opposition field, it will take a miracle to get everyone to agree on a national electoral pact for GE14, isn’t it so?

Can the 91-year-old Mahathir succeed in reuniting the Opposition nationally to threaten BN? Yes, the prospects are very, very slim.

However, Malaysians will watch political developments with bated breath.