JOHOR BARU: PAS has rejected Pakatan Harapan's "big tent" election proposal, citing the coalition's 22 months in government as the reason.

       Johor PAS commissioner Abdullah Husin said the party has not forgotten the time of Pakatan's administration, "which created instability in the country."

       "Our views are in line with our central committee, which is to reject the big tent approach and focus on penyatuan ummah (uniting the Muslim community) to face the 15th General Election (GE15).

       "We stand firm on our principle of ensuring that (the position of) Islam is preserved as stated in the Federal Constitution," he said in a statement on Monday (June 20).

       Abdullah added that PAS, through its mature and harmonious political culture, would continue working towards stability and harmony in the country.

       "PAS will not give up in our efforts to invite Malay and bumiputra parties such as Umno, Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia and those in Sabah and Sarawak to join our struggle.

       "We are not sidelining non-Muslim parties that are not extreme because penyatuan ummah means everybody respects and tolerates each other and also respects the Constitution and status quo," he added.

       The "big tent" strategy was mooted by some quarters in the Opposition, with some also calling for cooperation with Perikatan Nasional, which PAS is a component party of, to take on Barisan Nasional in straight fights in GE15.