DAP’s detrimental ambivalence on GE15

 

The biggest blunder that DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke has made in the five months since ascending to the post in March this year is to thoughtlessly announce that the party is prepared to work with Umno post the 15th general elections.

Following on the heels of DAP stalwart Lim Kit Siang’s statement last month that he would work with former PM Najib Abdul Razak if he condemned the 1MDB scandal, it must raise the question of what exactly DAP’s stand is come the next elections.

Even before GE15 is over, it's already thinking about what it will do if it loses - that is, it fails to take power under the Pakatan Harapan banner. Is that the way that anyone should go into battle - especially a do-or-die type like the next one?

Like Loke said, anything is possible in politics. That’s a statement made to justify mistakes, abandonment of ethical principles and even the embracing of corrupt practices for political expediency - the craving to get into and stay in power at all costs.

The first thing that strikes the mind is that DAP contributed to and helped along actively the fatal flaw of working with Dr Mahathir Mohamad and his Bersatu despite widespread mistrust of the man and his history of persecuting Anwar Ibrahim, Lim Kit Siang and Lim Guan Eng. Mistake number 1.

Now, if they do work with Umno, it will be mistakes compounded twice, making one believe that the DAP has a sinister motive for the party to contribute to the disintegration of a viable alternative to BN which will last for the longer term.

Perhaps secretly or within the confines of the inner circle of its own party, they are rather afraid that multiracialism as espoused by the PKR and its single party concept which promises a place for everyone in Malaysia may eventually result in either DAP’s demise or its absorption into the PKR fold, making DAP irrelevant in the grand scheme of things.

Why would otherwise savvy politicians such as Loke and Lim make such ridiculous statements on the eve of GE15 when it should be actively consolidating its relationship with its partners to come up with a strategy to win the hearts and minds of Malaysians for a newer and better future based on equality and justice for all? Why would DAP actively jeopardise Harapan’s chances at the polls?

Loke’s statement dissected contains two major elements - one that the DAP has no confidence that Harapan can win GE15, hardly the state of mind to go into a major battle.

Anwar’s position is a bit more practical when it comes to working with Umno. He said: “He (Loke) has discussed this issue extensively with me. If you read his statement in the full context, we are entering the election (GE15) to win.”

“But in the worst-case scenario, these are some of his considerations. My position differs slightly… The issue of who we will negotiate with post-election does not arise.”

That’s reasonable and clear enough to see but DAP seems to be blind to it or is attempting to leverage its stay within Harapan for maximum gain by announcing that it is prepared to consider other options - almost any other option available.

A new version of MCA?

Really, what could be worse for DAP, and what could completely destroy and make it a non-entity as a political party, is to work with its sworn enemy from day one - Umno. What role would it play after that, a new version of MCA? But MCA is already there and sucking up to Umno.

Remember in the early 70s, after the May 13, 1969, racial riots and the New Economic Policy, Najib’s father Abdul Razak Hussein had taken over from Tunku Abdul Rahman who was forced out by the young Turks within Umno, including Razak.

Razak forced the opposition - that had flourished in the 1969 elections - into the new Barisan Nasional coalition expanded from the Alliance. The only one who resisted and declined was Lim Kit Siang’s DAP then.

I quote him here when he made his speech at the first reconvening of Parliament post the 1969 riots on Feb 20, 1971: “As democratic socialists, we are dedicated to the abolition of poverty and economic backwardness regardless of race. We support any measure which will help better the lot of the Malay poor. But we are strongly opposed to the use of Malay special rights to enrich the new Malay rich to make them richer, while the mass of peasantry and poor are exploited as ever.”

That was good enough for Lim to keep DAP out of any coalition that did not serve the people. It was a brave decision considering the pressures Lim faced then, including detention for riots in which he played no part at all. In the last half a century or so, the DAP has changed considerably and is now considering working with Najib and Umno!

If DAP is actually threatening its Harapan partners for greater influence within the coalition now, it would be completely lost if its partners decide to call its bluff. Umno will reject it simply because it will cause its support base to erode.

Umno and DAP need each other so that each can condemn the other endlessly and thereby ensure their continued support from the Malays on one hand and the Chinese on the other in a land badly polarised by race politics. They really do feed off each other but desperation leads to poor choices.

Which brings us to the second element of Loke’s stance - his unabashed willingness to let DAP work with a party with which it has been at loggerheads for almost all its life - Umno - to get into the winning side. Is that something which will benefit either side? Not at all.

Is there then any further ulterior motive to all this? There is one possibility - Loke’s predecessor Lim Guan Eng faces yet another charge of corruption following the earlier one over the purchase of a bungalow at a lower price which was withdrawn after Harapan came to power.

If Harapan does come to power again, DAP of course will stay on in the coalition and reap the benefits, including perhaps a review of Guan Eng’s corruption case. If it does not, why not work with Umno instead and perhaps there is a possibility of a review of the case the way Guan Eng’s case was reviewed earlier.

Would DAP allow itself to be compromised for Guan Eng’s sake? Judging from what the elder Lim and Loke said - the elder Lim is prepared to work with a convicted felon while Loke wants to work with Umno - the answer looks like yes.

One thing is very clear: DAP’s ambivalent stance over GE15 can potentially cost it and Harapan victory at GE15. It's time that DAP and its partners realised that and closed ranks before it's too late. - Mkini

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P GUNASEGARAM, a former editor at online and print news publications, and head of equity research, is an independent writer and analyst.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.