Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman was acquitted of abetting corruption, misappropriation of funds and money laundering by the Court of Appeal earlier this week.PETALING JAYA: Muda is unlikely to stage a comeback in the next general election, even with Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman at the helm following his recent acquittal on corruption charges, analysts say.They say the party, founded five years ago, has missed its opportunity.Syaza Shukri of International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) said Muda was at its peak in the year before the 15th general election (GE15), which was held in November 2022.鈥淭hey were hot in 2021 but now people don鈥檛 seem to remember them.鈥淭hey missed the opportunity to attract voters because they lost momentum,鈥 she told FMT.Syaza Shukri.Syaza said Muda has struggled to project a clear identity or establish its purpose.鈥淧eople don鈥檛 know exactly what Muda is fighting for. Right now, it feels more like an NGO,鈥 she said.Syaza also believes Muda suffers from an image problem, largely appearing to be a 鈥渙ne-man party鈥. There appears to be a lack of trust in Muda鈥檚 ability to become an effective third force, she added.Explaining the difference between how Muda and PKR functioned when their respective leaders were confronted with legal jeopardy, Syaza said that in PKR鈥檚 case, other leaders stepped up to lead when current prime minister Anwar Ibrahim was twice incarcerated.鈥淢uda tried to do the same with acting president Amira (Aisya Abdul Aziz) but that has not been enough,鈥 she added.Syed Saddiq relinquished his post at the helm of the party after he was convicted by the High Court of abetting criminal breach of trust (CBT), misappropriation of funds and money laundering.On Wednesday, the Court of Appeal unanimously acquitted the Muar MP of all charges.Muda needs veterans and an allyAzmi Hassan.Azmi Hassan of Akademi Nusantara said Muda鈥檚 strategy of positioning itself from the onset as a platform for disillusioned voters across the political divide, has failed to materialise.鈥淲hen Muda was first established, it was to attract younger voters, not specifically from Pakatan Harapan, but from across the board. That was their strategy,鈥 he said when contacted by FMT.However, he noted that Muda failed to resonate with younger, disillusioned voters 鈥 particularly among the non-Malays.Azmi said the party may want to reconsider its approach to remain relevant, adding that it needs more than just young leaders.Muda needs a strong ally, he said\ 鈥 either Pakatan Harapan (PH) or Barisan Nasional (BN).However, Azmi said both coalitions may be hesitant to collaborate with Muda, fearing the party may not bring sufficient strategic value to the table.James Chin of the University of Tasmania said Syed Saddiq鈥檚 acquittal presents Muda with an opportunity to rebuild its image.James Chin.鈥淢uda was able to attract a lot of young people, including many youths from the Chinese community. But what happened was a lot of young people moved away after Syed Saddiq was charged with corruption, including the Malays,鈥 he said.鈥淣ow that he has been discharged by the courts, if he goes back to working with the party, I believe he will be able to recover lost ground.鈥滺owever, Chin said the party鈥檚 biggest hurdle remains seat negotiations with potential allies.鈥淓verything will depend on how well they do. The biggest problem they face is to get PH to give them seats to contest. In the last round, they won only one seat (in Muar).鈥滳hin said that Muda should be given a chance as Syed Saddiq is still capable of attracting young people from across all ethnic groups.