KUALA LUMPUR, March 15 — The Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (Muda) said it will uphold its role as an independent third bloc and reiterated that the party will not participate in Perikatan Nasional’s (PN) nationwide roadshow.

In a statement today, Muda said it considers the issue regarding its participation in the event to be final as it has already been refuted by the party’s leadership.

"Once again, we would like to issue a firm reminder to all parties to refrain from arbitrarily issuing statements that overstep the party’s decision-making authority.

"Any announcement related to Muda, or its leadership, will only be issued via the party’s official channels,” read the statement.

The statement was issued after Muda’s central executive committee held a meeting with the party’s co-founder Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman last night.

It was learnt that among the main topics discussed was Syed Saddiq’s participation in PN’s nationwide roadshow.

In the same statement, Muda said it will continue its role as a third bloc and function as an effective check and balance in Malaysian politics.

It said that the party will continue to be the voice of Malaysians and listed three main issues that were discussed.

The issues were on the cost of living, fair allocation for all elected representatives and institutional reforms that have yet to be implemented.

"Muda will also continue to speak up, reject and push for recommendations on constitutional amendments related to citizenship issues.

"These issues will have an impact, especially on children, if not urgently addressed,” read the statement.

Yesterday, it was reported that Muda acting president Amira Aisya Abd Aziz and former president Syed Saddiq were taken by surprise by PN chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s announcement naming Syed Saddiq as a participant in the coalition’s roadshow.

Amira Aisya also expressed her concern about Syed Saddiq’s participation in the event that had triggered criticism among Muda’s grassroots.

On Monday, it was reported that Syed Saddiq said he would discuss the matter with his party first before joining any such event, after he was contacted by party leadership following Muhyiddin’s announcement.

Muda had clarified the previous day that it would not be participating in PN’s nationwide tour, with party secretary-general Amir Hariri Abd Hadi saying the party had never made any decision or discussed the matter.

On March 9, Muhyiddin said that the Opposition will conduct a roadshow dubbed "Jelajah PN” nationwide, slated to commence after Hari Raya Aidilfitri this year.

He then revealed that Syed Saddiq will join the programme due to the latter being "pro-PN”.

Muda has generally viewed PN and its component parties as political adversaries, despite both being part of the federal Opposition.

Muda had previously advocated for Pakatan Harapan (PH) before it withdrew its support for the ruling coalition that makes up the unity government in September last year.

In November last year, Syed Saddiq stepped down as Muda president following his conviction for corruption charges.

The former youth and sports minister was previously the Youth chief for Muhyiddin’s Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu), a lynchpin party of PN.