KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang is being persuaded by his peers in PAS to resign as party president, sources say, to prevent his health and relationship with other Pakatan Rakyat leaders from becoming worse.

They told The Malaysian Insider that this is so that the Islamist party can repair ties with Pakatan partners, DAP and PKR, that have been strained lately by Hadi’s cold attitude towards the coalition.

The PAS president has not attended the coalition’s presidential council meetings since disagreeing with PKR and DAP over the move to remove Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim as Selangor menteri besar in August.

A veteran PAS leader said Hadi’s temperament has changed since his hospitalisation in Istanbul, Turkey, in May, where he was admitted after complaining of breathing difficulties.

Hadi’s temper also appears to be on a short fuse, as shown when he upbraided opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim who visited him at his Terengganu home during the height of the Selangor MB saga.

“The president has changed a lot since he was hospitalised in Turkey. He constantly makes unilateral decisions. It may be time for him to step down,” said the veteran leader who requested anonymity.

After clashing repeatedly with other Pakatan leaders, Hadi did not attend the launching of Pakatan’s 2015 shadow budget at the Dewan Rakyat on Oct 10.

It is learnt that the move to persuade the 66-year-old to step down is being handled by the party’s veteran leaders whom Hadi respects.

Sources said that Hadi could be persuaded to relinquish the president’s post to take up the post of Mursyidul Am (spiritual leader) which is currently held by Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat. By bowing out of the day-to-day running of the Islamist party and dealing with Pakatan partners, Hadi would have the time to rest. But he would still be an influential voice in the party by virtue of being the Mursyidul Am.

The source said it is hoped that Hadi will announce that he will not be defending the president’s post in the party’s elections next year.

The biggest obstacle to the move to get Hadi to step down is the fact that in PAS, there is no retirement age, as exemplified by Nik Aziz still holding the Mursyidal Am post despite his poor health.

“Leadership in PAS is different from other organisations or parties. A leader in PAS is the leader of a Muslim movement,” said a party source.

If Hadi does step down, the party would also be faced with the challenge of finding a successor given the deep rifts among its senior leadership. PAS’ No 2 is Hadi’s deputy Mohamad Sabu, a popular but also polarising leader who is disliked by the party’s conservatives and those who don’t like Pakatan’s de facto head Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

“Many will not be comfortable with Mohamad Sabu. But one person popular to take over from Hadi could be vice-president Datuk Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man,” said a party activist of 30 years.

Tuan Ibrahim, who is also Pahang PAS commissioner, is a popular ulama after Hadi and Nik Aziz due to his openess. The problem is, Tuan Ibrahim has no interest in leading the party. Aside from Tuan Ibrahim and Mohamad, there is also a small-scale campaign to get another vice-president, Datuk Husam Musa, to take over from Hadi. — The Malaysian Insider

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on November 11, 2014.