PKR needs recovery plan to avoid ‘disastrous’ GE16 defeat, says Tian Chua

 The party veteran says PKR must reconnect with grassroots supporters and address concerns across communities.

Weaker support from PKR’s grassroots is believed to be a factor behind the party’s defeats in the recent Johor and Negeri Sembilan state elections.

PETALING JAYA:

PKR must recognise that it risks a “disastrous defeat” in the next general election unless it devises and implements a robust recovery plan, warns veteran party leader Tian Chua.

He said the party must work to restore its momentum and build up its political capital to continue its struggle.

Party leaders “have to act like a corporate turnaround consultant and change the reality instead of merely commenting on it,” he said in an interview with FMT.

Tian Chua, a former vice-president, was sacked by the party in 2023 for contesting the Batu parliamentary seat as an independent against PKR’s chosen candidate at the 2022 general election.

He has since welcomed party president Anwar Ibrahim’s call for veterans to return to the fold, and said he attended the party’s national congress at Anwar’s invitation.

The former two-term MP said the weakening of PKR’s grassroots was one of the factors behind its defeats in the Johor and Negeri Sembilan state elections.

Former PKR vice-president Tian Chua said many PKR supporters or those who had taken part in the 1998 Reformasi movement felt neglected after PKR entered government.

Tian Chua said many people who had supported the party or taken part in the 1998 Reformasi movement felt neglected after PKR entered government. “They feel that a gap emerged, and that gap became wider and wider,” he said.

“The grassroots members who had been very supportive suddenly felt marginalised. They feel that since the party is in government, it no longer needs them. They step back and become demotivated.”

Tian Chua, who turns 63 this year, said the problem extended beyond party veterans, or “otai,” and affected many ordinary supporters whose contributions had been crucial to the party. “The key is to regenerate their interest and make them feel that this movement belongs to them.”

Competing expectations

Tian Chua said Chinese and Indian voters felt PKR had not fought hard enough for their rights or for more equal treatment, while Malay voters saw the party as “neither here nor there” and not defending what they perceived as the erosion of Malay rights.

“In the end, you are stuck in the middle and are not going to please anybody,” he said.

Even so, he said PKR must remain consistent in promoting policies that cut across ethnic divisions, even if the approach was not immediately popular, and warned against relying on last-minute policies to win back support.

“If you introduce a few policies just because the election is approaching, many people will say they will not take the bait,” he said. “We have to start from the bottom and rebuild the party’s connection with the people.” - FMT