AS the 15th General Election (GE15) looms, machinery and strategies are now afoot along with talks of possible collaborations that will determine the next federal administration.

Among them is the proposed Pas-Umno collaboration that did not augur well with their grassroots — with supporters of the Islamic party growing increasingly disillusioned and Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi not giving any positive feedback on the matter whenever approached by journalists.

As of now, experts are saying Pas is losing grip on its political partners as the party battles for survival against irrelevancy.

National Professors Council senior fellow and political analyst Dr Jeniri Amir said Pas' downfall would be its own doing due to failure of its leaders to remain steadfast in its past collaboration with Umno in Muafakat Nasional. 

"Pas is a confusing party and is unsure of its friends and foes. It had betrayed Umno when it supported Bersatu (Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia), whose president was the prime minister. It is a bit late to make amends with Umno now as GE15 draws near.

"Sincerity, commitment and sacrifices are important aspects when forming a coalition. It will be a mammoth task for Pas to convince Umno all over again."

He said Pas made a mistake by leaving Umno and joining Bersatu leaders in Perikatan Nasional (PN), whose strength mainly stemmed "from Umno leaders who have jumped ship".

Similarly, the opposition parties, especially DAP, would not give such a second chance for Pas to join its coalition, he said.

Political analyst Dr Ainul Adzellie Hasnul described Pas' overtures to reform a political pact with Umno was desperate move to ensure considerable gains in the national polls.

"By having a pact with Umno, Pas can avoid contesting against Umno in Malay majority areas.

"I expect the Umno Supreme Council to disagree on cooperating with Pas, and Umno will go solo this coming election."

He said Umno grassroots would definitely oppose any cooperation with Pas as they had already felt betrayed when the party opted to work with Bersatu.

Geostrategist Associate Professor Dr Azmi Hassan said the "courting" by Pas could be a ruse as it was obvious that Umno would reject its offer.

"I don't think the move is so much about desperation. Come GE15, Pas could say that it has tried it best for the ummah (people) to cooperate with Umno, but was turned down.

"The real diamond could be in retaining Kelantan and Terengganu, as well as securing Kedah if it works with Umno."

The general perception of Pas did not look good at the federal level and the performance of its MPs in the cabinet was nothing to shout about. Azmi said Pas was not regarded as a strong party to govern the country, either on its own or in a coalition.

Pas used to join hands with PKR and DAP in the Pakatan Rakyat coalition in 2008.

However, DAP in 2015 announced the death of the coalition after the exit of Pas, which saw the birth of Pakatan Harapan (PH) comprising DAP, PKR and Amanah. Sabah party Upko later joined the pact.

Muafakat Nasional was then formed between Pas and Umno against the then ruling Pakatan Harapan that came into power after the 14th General Election.

Pas then transferred its support to PN led by Bersatu after the fall of PH in a development dubbed the Sheraton Move in 2020, and some of its leaders were then appointed as cabinet ministers.