COMMENT | Statistically, BN will stand to gain more if PAS is not within Pakatan Harapan. It goes without saying that three-cornered fights will split the Malay votes; especially in Malay majority areas where the Malays constitute more than 70 percent of the electorate.

For now, we are just looking at the 165 parliamentary seats in Peninsular Malaysia, as the remaining 57 parliamentary seats in Sabah and Sarawak have their own peculiarities.

To be sure, there are 71 Malay seats where the Malays constitute more than 70 percent of the electorate. At least, this is the conventional wisdom.

But conventional wisdom can be wrong too. This is why Harapan should not necessarily be afraid of three-cornered fights. The key is to stay united and be prepared. More bluntly, it is better to be over prepared.

And three-cornered fights will instil an ethic of discipline in Harapan. Indeed, Parti Peribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) affirms that there are at least 94 parliamentary seats where the Malays constitute less than 70 percent of the voters.

And out of the 94 parliamentary seats, at least 60 consists of more than 40 percent of the non-Malay voters. For the lack of better word, these are the citadels of the opposition.

Non-Malay voters are inclined to root for the opposition, as they have understood the highly flawed and feudal nature of Umno and BN.

Invariably, the 71 Malay seats in the potential control of PAS and Umno versus the 60 mixed seats in the hands of Pakatan is, of course, a structural and distinct advantage to the latter.

But there is a strategic benefit to being the underdog too. Psychologically, the members and volunteers of Harapan are stronger, better and firmer in their resolve.

In the same vein, it is also opportune for Harapan to reach out to PAS grassroots now with the message: voting PAS means voting for Umno. By voting PAS, one is, in fact, rooting for Umno's malfeasance and abuse of power, to perpetuate indefinitely.

Naturally, there are serious policy implications too, as PAS and Umno are devoid of ideas. Thus, voting PAS implies voting for the punitive GST, and the ever higher and newer taxes across the board. More hardship for the average Ahmad on the main street...