A senior Malaysian political figure has disclosed that a foreign government once offered to assist his Islamist party in toppling the Malaysian regime. Abdul Hadi Awang, President of Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) and one of the nation’s most prominent religious figures, made the startling claim during an address to party faithful at the organisation’s 72nd annual general assembly.
Speaking at the Pusat Tarbiyah Islamiyah Kelantan in Pengkalan Chepa, Kota Bharu, Hadi revealed that the overture took place in 2014 during an official visit to Malaysia by former US President Barack Obama. At the time, PAS operated as a key constituent within Pakatan Rakyat, the primary opposition coalition of the era. According to Hadi, senior party figures received an invitation to attend a high-level meeting at the United States Embassy in Kuala Lumpur.
Takiyuddin Hassan, then the Assistant Secretary-General of PAS, and Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar, who served as Hadi’s political secretary, attended the diplomatic encounter on behalf of the party leadership. Hadi informed delegates that embassy representatives expressed a willingness to assist opposition forces in destabilising and replacing the sitting government. The delegation firmly rejected the proposition, refusing to invite external manipulation into domestic politics.
Following the preliminary meeting, the US Ambassador requested a private audience with Hadi directly. Accompanied by former PAS Secretary-General Mustafa Ali, Hadi attended the session, where the ambassador probed the party’s preferences regarding the country’s executive leadership.
“Guess what the ambassador asked me,” Hadi told the assembly. “He asked who PAS proposed as Prime Minister. I replied, ‘Who does America agree with?’ He was shocked. That was my answer. I informed Mahathir Mohamad of the matter, and Mahathir remarked that it was a good response.”
The narrative fits into a tumultuous period in Malaysian political history. Four years after the alleged diplomatic exchange, the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition suffered a historic defeat in the 2018 general election, ending more than six decades of uninterrupted rule. That political shift was largely driven by the Pakatan Harapan opposition alliance under Mahathir Mohamad, who campaigned aggressively against incumbent Prime Minister Najib Razak amidst the multi-billion-dollar 1MDB corruption scandal. Mahathir subsequently assumed the premiership.
Takiyuddin Hassan independently corroborated the embassy encounter, confirming that PAS leadership deliberately shut down suggestions of foreign intervention. He stressed that while other political factions might tolerate external interference to achieve domestic power, PAS maintained an absolute stance against foreign encroachment in national affairs.
