A political party that keeps sacking its own leaders and elected reps is not displaying strength – it is displaying fear, insecurity and collapse.
— Author unknown
I have written several articles in the past following the numerous power struggles within Bersatu. The party, co-founded by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin as an alternative to Umno, has never known peace since its formation in 2016.
At that time, many — myself included — believed it would become a credible Malay alternative to the corruption-tainted Umno. Alas, the naïve were taken for a ride, as always. Ten years later, the end of Bersatu is nigh.
I am prepared to say this with confidence: today, Bersatu appears to be heading towards political extinction.
The party has been plagued by betrayal, factional fighting, endless power struggles and personal ambitions almost from the day it was born.
Its first major upheaval came in February 2020 during the infamous Sheraton Move, when Bersatu became the prime mover in the treacherous collapse of the duly elected Pakatan Harapan government.
That single political betrayal changed Malaysia forever. Such was the extent of the damage inflicted by the treachery of Bersatu’s leaders.
The rakyat voted overwhelmingly in 2018 for reform and a new political culture. Instead, they witnessed backroom conspiracies, defections and opportunistic alignments engineered largely by leaders within Bersatu.
Ironically, the seeds of Bersatu’s own destruction were planted at Sheraton itself.
Politics has a way of punishing betrayal. Karma eventually returns to haunt those who inflict instability upon others. What Bersatu did to Pakatan Harapan in 2020 eventually began happening within Bersatu itself.
Soon after taking power, internal cracks became visible.
First came the bitter fallout between Mahathir and Muhyiddin. Mahathir, the party chairman, was eventually pushed aside and later sacked, together with several loyalists. Bersatu then split into rival camps almost immediately after achieving federal power. Muhyiddin may have become prime minister, but he never fully controlled the competing ambitions within the party.
One of the most prominent figures to emerge during this period was Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin.
Hamzah was among the key strategists behind the Sheraton Move and rapidly became one of the most powerful men in Bersatu. As Home Minister and later Opposition Leader, he strengthened his grip on the party machinery and built strong networks among division leaders and MPs.
By 2021, after Muhyiddin lost the premiership, many political observers already saw Hamzah positioning himself for eventual control of Bersatu.
The power struggle intensified after the 15th General Election in 2022. Although Perikatan Nasional performed strongly among Malay voters, Bersatu itself increasingly became dependent on PAS for political survival.
This weakened Muhyiddin’s authority internally while strengthening Hamzah’s influence.
Over the next two years, tensions between the Muhyiddin faction and the Hamzah camp became more obvious. Party leaders quietly aligned themselves with one side or the other. Division chiefs grew restless. MPs began openly expressing dissatisfaction.
Then came the latest purge. In an earlier round of disciplinary action, Bersatu sacked Hamzah himself along with 16 others, including MPs Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal, Azahari Hasan and Fathul Huzir Ayob.
This week, the crisis deepened further when Bersatu sacked two state assemblymen and suspended five MPs and two assemblymen for allegedly violating the party constitution and code of ethics.
Such drastic action reveals not strength but desperation. A confident political party does not repeatedly sack its own leaders, MPs and grassroots machinery. What Malaysians are witnessing is a party imploding from within.
Even more damaging is the rise of Hamzah’s so-called “reset” movement.
Political analysts now say the movement has effectively overtaken Bersatu itself. Reports indicate that Hamzah commands the support of 19 MPs and more than 100 division chiefs — numbers that dwarf the remnants still loyal to Muhyiddin.
The latest developments also show why Umno’s invitation for former Bersatu members to return has failed to gain traction.
Many of these displaced leaders no longer see their future in Umno. More importantly, they cannot politically justify joining a unity government that includes DAP, especially after years of campaigning on a strong Malay-Islamic narrative alongside PAS.
Instead, many appear more attracted to Hamzah’s emerging bloc, which is believed to enjoy closer ties with PAS and stronger support among Perikatan Nasional grassroots members.
This leaves Bersatu trapped in a political no-man’s-land.
Without Hamzah’s faction, Bersatu loses much of its organisational strength. Without PAS, it loses its electoral machinery and Malay ground support. Without Mahathir, it has lost its founding legitimacy. And without Muhyiddin commanding full authority, the party appears leaderless and directionless.
Unlike Umno, Bersatu lacks historical roots and deep institutional resilience. Umno survived numerous crises because it possessed decades of patronage networks, emotional attachment among members and strong nationwide machinery.
Bersatu, by contrast, was largely personality-driven from the start. It was built around Mahathir’s charisma and Muhyiddin’s opportunism during a period of anti-Umno sentiment.
Once those personalities weakened or turned against one another, the party’s fragile foundations began to collapse.
Today, Bersatu resembles a fractured political shell. Perhaps the clearest sign that the end is near is this: Malaysians are no longer shocked by Bersatu’s crises — they now expect them.
That is usually how political death begins. Not with one dramatic explosion, but with public exhaustion, irrelevance and loss of confidence.
The Sheraton Move may have delivered temporary power to Bersatu in 2020, but six years later it appears to have delivered the party’s eventual downfall as well.
It is clear that in politics, betrayal rarely ends in lasting victory. Politicians would do well to believe in karma — they had better do so.
The views expressed here are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of Sarawak Tribune. The writer can be reached at sirsiah@gmail.com.
