KOTA KINABALU: Pakatan Harapan's "big tent" approach doesn't work, says Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal.
The Parti Warisan president said that based on what can be seen from previous state elections in Melaka and Sarawak, he felt that people want change.
“Look at the big tent in Melaka, they (Pakatan Harapan) still lost. Sarawak, they still lost,” he said during a breaking of fast programme with Sembulan residents near here, Tuesday (April 19).
Shafie said people have decided on wanting a leadership change and there was no point in forcing people to accept what they do not want.
He said Pakatan was not his party, not his coalition and it was up to Pakatan to choose who they want as leader or members.
“But don’t blame us if people don’t vote for you. It doesn’t mean that if we (Warisan) are not there, you don’t get the vote,” he said.
Shafie said politicians must be adaptable to changes and bring the change that people were craving, not just words, but "the deal" itself.
“We can’t force people to take what we want. We need to see what the people want,” he said when asked whether Warisan was willing to work with the Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (Muda).
He said for Warisan, they must work on strengthening their own party first, and not thinking of "big tent" here, "big tent" there.
When asked about Muda president Syed Saddiq Syed Abul Rahman’s recent statement that their relationship with Warisan was still good, he said Warisan was in good relation with everyone.
He said different parties have different political ideologies and that was understandable, but on humanitarian grounds, Warisan was in a "good relationship" with everyone.
Relations between Muda and Warisan have been perceived to be strained after Muda cut an electoral pact with Pakatan's DAP and Amanah during the Johor state elections.
On other matters, when asked about PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s statement that he was still the sole candidate for the PM’s position, Shafie said that was his right to say so.