KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 13 — PAS could determine who will govern Malaysia for the next five years if the Islamist party can win 40 federal seats, claimed Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang.

He based his claim on his prediction that no single party would be able to win the 112 seats needed for a simple majority on its own.

"Even if there are parties with 100 seats, 80 seats, they need a minimum of 112 seats to form the government,” he was quoted as saying by PAS organ Harakah.

"If PAS has 40 seats, it means we will be in a pivotal position for anyone who wants to form the government.”

It is unclear if he is including the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) in his forecast. 

While BN is a coalition of 13 parties, it contests elections as a single entity and has formed all previous governments as such.

Hadi has already claimed his party would contest 130 federal seats in the 14th general election.

The Islamist party is not aligned with the larger Pakatan Harapan pact and its loyalties are not immediately clear.

It currently has 14 MPs. Its best ever election result was the 23 federal seats it won in 2008 when it allied with DAP and PKR.