‘Superteam’ party of KJ, Rafizi, Syed Saddiq won’t work, say analysts

‘Superteam’ party of KJ, Rafizi, Syed Saddiq won’t work, say analysts

PETALING JAYA: A political “superteam” featuring big names like Khairy Jamaluddin, Rafizi Ramli and Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman might look good on paper, but won’t go far in Malaysia’s political terrain, analysts have warned.

Personality conflicts and differing strategies by these high-profile politicians could sink a new party before it gained traction, says public policy specialist Kartini Aboo Talib of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.

“Superteams may fail because of clashing egos, different leadership styles, undefined roles, or competing strategies and interests,” she told FMT. “Unless each person is willing to give and take, and share the same goal of defeating a common political opponent, it’s not going to work.”

The idea of a new party was floated by Umno Supreme Council member Puad Zarkashi, who joked that high-profile but politically displaced leaders like Khairy, Rafizi and others should form a party together with “solid bargaining power”.

However, Malaysia has a long history of failed third forces, from Parti Socialis Malaysia to Pejuang to even Muda, all of which struggled to gain ground against dominant coalitions.

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Azmi Hassan of Akademi Nusantara said Malaysia’s political ecosystem still revolves around parties with deep grassroots support.

“The names that are mentioned have one thing in common, that is, they are very critical of their party, whether current or former,” he said. “But you need more than criticism and charisma. You need a membership base and a working party machinery.”

Azmi cited the limited electoral success achieved by the youth-based Muda, despite Syed Saddiq’s fame, saying that a party cannot survive on charisma or non-member support alone.

“It doesn’t work that way. That’s why Umno, PKR, DAP, PAS and Bersatu remain dominant because they have a strong grassroots base,” he said.