Kit Siang is a TROJAN HORSE - Dr M

MALAYSIA has enjoyed more than half a century of peace and stability and high growth under Barisan Nasional governments. The seizure of power by the Malay majority upon independence, as predicted by foreign observers and some locals, did not happen.

Instead, under Tunku Abdul Rahman, they promoted a sharing of power and wealth between the three major races through a coalition, the Alliance. The Alliance won 51 out of 52 of the 98 Federal Legislative Council seats contested in 1955.

The Tunku, as chief minister, agreed with Tan Cheng Lock's request and gave citizenship to one million unqualified Chinese and Indians, diluting the Malay majority from 80 per cent to 60 per cent.

In 1963, Singapore joined the new state of Malaysia. The People's Action Party (PAP) did not believe in sharing power.

It promoted meritocracy and rule by the elite by suggesting that Malaysia was not ruled by the cleverest and the most qualified but by Malays. This was intended to stop Chinese support for MCA and antagonise them against Malays and Umno.

In the 1964 election, PAP contested with the Malaysian Malaysia slogan to reflect its meritocratic creed. It won only one seat. The Chinese in the peninsula, under MCA, rejected PAP.

The people of the peninsula, in rejecting PAP, demonstrated their belief in the concept of kongsi, or sharing, espoused by the Alliance. Singapore and its chauvinistic meritocrats had to leave Malaysia.

But a Trojan horse was left behind in the form of a political party named DAP. The similarity of name is not accidental for DAP was to continue the fight for a meritocratic Malaysian Malaysia. The fight against kongsi between the races was to continue.

Chinese dominated

Despite a claim that DAP is multiracial, its leadership and the overwhelming majority of its members belied the claim to this day. The strategy was to antagonise the Chinese against Malays by suggesting that the Chinese were second-class citizens.

This campaign was quite subdued when the BN government won strong support from people of all races in Malaysia.

But as soon as the government appeared to be weak, DAP extremists were let loose and the attacks on Malays became blatant, to the point of claiming that Malays are as much newcomers to Malaysia as the Chinese and Indians.

There should, therefore, be no special treatment for them. DAP conveniently forgets the special treatment accorded to the Chinese and Indians in Malaysia.

The growth and prosperity of this multiracial country depend largely on Sino-Malay cooperation or kongsi. Barisan Nasional exemplifies this kongsi spirit.

To break this kongsi, DAP must antagonise the Chinese against Malays.

To win, DAP must make the Chinese hate the Malays

Through all the elections in Malaysia, the people of Johor have personified the kongsi principle. In every election, Malays would support the MCA Chinese and the Chinese would support Umno Malay candidates, resulting in Johor delivering 100 per cent BN victories.

Now DAP stalwart Lim Kit Siang has decided it is time to break up the kongsi.

True, the Chinese majority in Gelang Patah is smaller than the other constituencies Kit Siang had contested.

But Kit Siang hopes with the support of Pas, he can split Malay votes to defeat BN. Now Umno is contesting Gelang Patah with little hope of getting Chinese support.

Kita Siang does not agree with the Islamic state and Islamic laws proposed by Pas but that party's ability to break Malay unity in Johor would benefit DAP.

Kit Siang knows that Pas would never be strong enough to impose its version of the Islamic laws on Malaysia if Pakatan wins.

Kit Siang is wilier than any of Pas' leaders. He also knows that Pas needs the support of the Chinese to defeat Umno. He holds the trump card in any pakatan of the opposition.

Silly PAS being used by DAP

Johor is a Barisan National bastion. If it is broken, then he could put an end to MCA's cooperation with Umno under the old kongsi or sharing concept.

Instead, there would be meritocracy in everything, where the winner takes all and the devil takes the hindmost.

A win for Kit Siang will be victory for racism and rule by the elite as is found in a nearby country. It will spell the end of good relations in Johor between the races.

Victory for BN's Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman will mean a sharing of power and wealth of this country between all races and tribes in multiracial Malaysia.

Mahathir Mohamad is the former prime minister of Malaysia

- New Straits Times