KUANTAN: Perikatan Nasional (PN) seems to have jumped the gun by naming Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin as its prime ministerial candidate when the Malay-dominant party itself appears to be still struggling to find a footing in the Malaysian political landscape.

Universiti Malaya political analyst Dr Mohammad Tawfik Yaakub dismissed Gerakan president Datuk Dr Dominic Lau Hoe Chai's suggestion for Muhyiddin to helm the country if PN comes into power after the 15th General Election (GE15), saying Bersatu was certain to face an uphill task to secure victory.

"It is going to be tough for Bersatu candidates to win in GE15 or help the party to secure a huge victory.

"Based on my observation, Bersatu might end up winning only three parliamentary seats, namely Pagoh, Sri Gading and Alor Gajah, and lose the other seats which they aim to contest. 

"Even during the last general election, Bersatu only won 13 of the 52 parliamentary seats which it contested.

"They lost more than half of the seats and judging by the current political scenario it will be even tougher. Muhyiddin has no chance of becoming a prime minister," he said.

Last night, Dominic Lau, in his speech before launching the Pahang PN election machinery in Temerloh said Muhyiddin, who is the PN chairman, will be elected as the 10th prime minister when PN comes into power after GE15.

He was quoted as saying: "We will win in GE15, we will set up the government from the mandate given by the people, by the people and for the people ...we will elect Muhyiddin as the 10th prime minister."

On PN choosing to endorse Muhyiddin, Tawfik said PN would have to cast the net wider and introduce new faces with strong leadership qualities.

"Enough is enough. Muhyiddin is already in his 70s and bringing in the old faces (former leaders) has only ended in problems.

"I am not trying to downplay their contribution but bringing in the veteran politicians on board might become a burden to the country," he said.

Meanwhile, Pahang Umno Youth chief Mohd Farid Mohd Nor said it was PN's right to name their potential prime minister, but felt Muhyiddin's performance as the eighth prime minister was nothing to shout about.

"If Muhyiddin had performed well during his tenure as prime minister then why was there a need for him to vacate the position.

"Muhyiddin can be PN's potential candidate, but he has to wait for the outcome of the general election first.

"I feel that PN is not stable as Muhyiddin wants to become the prime minister, but at the same time Pas was recently in talks with Umno.

"Why is Pas negotiating with Umno? If PN is confident of winning in GE15, they should not hold talks with parties outside the PN coalition," he said.

Meanwhile, political analyst and law lecturer Professor Dr Nik Ahmad Kamal Nik Mahmood said Muhyiddin's endorsement as PN's prime ministerial candidate might be able to secure votes, especially among fence-sitters.

"Muhyiddin might have the upper hand due to his lengthy political experience and the facts that he has been with Bersatu from the beginning.

"He seems to be the most suitable candidate than any other leaders in PN. I guess within PN, they probably have agreed that Muhyiddin will attract more voters because of his reputation and this could be PN's strategy to secure support from fence-sitters.

"Fence sitters might consider Muhyiddin a suitable and reliable prime ministerial candidate based on his performance during the Covid-19 era. It might be a strategy deployed by the PN to attract non-Malay voters," he said.

Nik Ahmad Kamal said there might be some voters who consider Muhyiddin as the "hero" who stood up and exposed the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scandal.

Muhyiddin had previously served as the eighth prime minister between March 1, 2020, before he resigned on Aug 16, 2021.

He stepped down after failing to secure majority support from the members of parliament after 15 Umno MPs withdrew their support for PN.

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had served as the country's prime minister twice. He was first appointed as the fourth prime minister on July 16, 1981, before stepping down on Oct 30, 2003.

He was again elected to office from May 10, 2018 to Feb 24, 2020, as the country's seventh prime minister.