Gua Musang parliamentarian Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah said PAS was being unrealistic for promising a welfare state if it wins the next general election.

The politician known to many as Kuli - who led the now defunct Parti Melayu Semangat 46 which collaborated with PAS in the 1990s - said the latter was incapable of carrying out its plans.

He said during that cooperation period, many things concerning the people's welfare were not implemented, resulting in the people getting fed up with the empty promises.

“It's all talk. Anyone can talk but it does not mean they can perform,” he was quoted as saying by Bernama today.

On Saturday, PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang said that PAS would turn the country into a welfare state should it win the coming general election.

Kelantan ready for change

Semangat 46 was set up by Razaleigh and current Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister Dr Rais Yatim in 1988 after a split in Umno.

The breakaway party had collaborated with PAS in the 1990 and 1994 general elections. However, Razaleigh and Rais rejoined Umno after Semangat 46 was dissolved in May 1996.

According to Razaleigh, the BN government had discharged its duty to help the less fortunate by giving various aid and contributions.

On the next general election, Razaleigh - who is also an Umno supreme council member - said he believed the people of Kelantan were ready for a change in government and would give BN the mandate to rule the state.

“The people of Kelantan already know which government can bring change to them,” he said.

Meanwhile, Razaleigh said he was leaving it to the party leadership to decide on his candidacy in the coming general election.

Kelantan has been a PAS stronghold since 1990, with re-elections in 1995, 1999 and 2004. It is currently the only Malaysian state not ruled by the BN.