PETALING JAYA: Umno has never violated the Muafakat Nasional (Muafakat) charter and has reminded PAS that the pact was not formed with the intention for Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) to be part of it, says Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.

       The Umno deputy president stressed that the views by PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang that Umno has defied the Muafakat pact is actually "misguided".

       "Umno has never defied the Muafakat pact.

       "To my friends in PAS, let us not forget that Muafakat was not established with the aim for Bersatu to be part of it.

       "In fact, one of the reasons Muafakat was formed was to oppose Pakatan Harapan. Bersatu was part of the Pakatan component then.

       "As such, to force Umno to accept Bersatu contradicted the real spirit of which Muafakat was formed. What more when remembering how Bersatu had worked with DAP to oppose us and topple the Umno-led government," he said in a statement on Facebook on Sunday (Dec 5).

       Sinar Harian reported that Abdul Hadi had rejected the pact as Umno did not follow the charter that was agreed upon during its formation.

       He had claimed that when Muafakat was formed, the charter they had made stated that the pact could accept other parties including Bersatu.

       However, when it was to be implemented, Abdul Hadi claimed that there were certain parties in Umno that only wanted the cooperation to be between them, adding that this was against what was agreed upon.

       Mohamad acknowledged that Muafakat's role was to protect all Malays, but noted that anyone that wanted to join Muafakat must be aligned with the interests of Umno and PAS.

       "The Muafakat charter has to be interpreted in line with the current Umno and PAS political realities.

       "That is why Umno has never invited PKR, Amanah, Putra, or Pejuang to join Muafakat even though they are part of the ummah.

       "To be honest, it is because Umno does not want to offend PAS," he said.

       Mohamad said PAS is aware that the Umno delegates in Umno will not work with Bersatu.

       "Umno is tied to this decision.

       "So, it is very reasonable for this reality to be understood and accepted before PAS suggests new members in Muafakat," he said.

       He added that Muafakat is also a "non-binding pact" and was not registered as Umno wanted the platform to be viewed for everyone not just as a political instrument for Umno and PAS.

       "Just because Umno does not accept Bersatu, PAS abandons Muafakat. The interest of the Malays and Islam is far greater than the interest of Bersatu joining Muafakat.

       "I hope that the PAS president will continue to be together with Umno in exploring various new dimensions in developing Malay empowerment," he said.

       The Muafakat charter was signed on Sept 14, 2019, by PAS and Umno, which among others, agreed to cooperate for the development of the Islamic and Malay narrative without denying the diversity of religion, race and culture as central to the political stability, racial harmony and peace of the country.

       However, in Aug 20 last year, PAS officially joined Perikatan Nasional as a component member, which triggered uneasiness among Umno grassroots.

       Perikatan consists of Bersatu, PAS, Gerakan, Sabah STAR, and Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP).

       Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan had previously also said that its party's 191 divisions would deliberate on the Muafakat pact when it meets during the party's annual general meeting on Dec 18.