Why Tony Pua’s ouster matters

Tony Pua’s ouster from Selangor DAP central committee is a manifestation of the past and a representation of the future.

It is a manifestation of the past because DAP, for the past 10 years, had not been immune to the vicious internal rivalry between the grassroots leaders and national leaders. The early parachuting of Western-educated national leaders, who were quickly promoted and ascended to centre stage, had courted dissent from the grassroots.

It is human nature for people to feel dissatisfied when you have worked tirelessly without pay for decades, only to see someone else reap the fruits of your labour. 

This is particularly the case of grassroots members. They turn up at every event, respond to every request, put up every banner, brochure, flag for the party, and some even partake in the dirty but necessary work to help the party to win.

Often they are left in the wilderness as they come because their crasser, cruder, and commoner style seems unsuited for frontline politics. At most, they are given a small party position at a division that matters little.

Segambut MP Hannah Yeoh (photo) confirmed that such a struggle exists, and it doesn’t take an expert to know that Pua’s ouster is a manifestation of the struggle coming to a boil. 

If Pua had merely lost a chieftain contest, it would be less dramatic than having your party’s national icon being put at the 19th spot of a state central committee election. The grassroots dissent is dramatic and deafening.

This was also part of a larger pattern that saw national leaders being confronted with the opposition from the ground. Liew Chin Tong’s near-defeat as the Johor DAP chairman is one such example.

Party secretary-general Lim Guan Eng’s call for the leaders to appreciate the good deeds done by the grassroots members and leaders of the past was too little too late. It is no longer enough to ask them to be patient or ask them to accept the party’s verbal appreciation - they want a seat at the table, and they have decided to work in concert.

The backbone of the party

Grassroots members know perfectly well that they are the backbone of the party, although the public often mistakes the national leaders to be the pillar of strength. Grassroots members know enough that they are the primary reason all national leaders shine on behalf of the party.

They are called “grassroots” because they form the very ground which all party leaders stand on. A leader without grassroots support is a leader walking without legs, having no place to plant their feet on the ground.

Although the public could appreciate Pua’s love of talent in attracting people from the outside and quickly nominating them as candidates, the grouses on the ground could not be ignored.

They ask what the candidate had done for the party to deserve the immediate nomination other than having the right paper credentials. They detest parachuting candidates who do not have their feet on the ground.

Given this background, the path forward becomes challenging for DAP.

With grassroots leaders occupying the state DAP committee, this will ensure that the candidates from Selangor are from the grassroots. And that there will not be one person with too much power in deciding who should run in elections.

It is safe to assume that parachute candidates will have a hard time justifying their claim to run for a seat in Selangor, and that a track record with the party becomes a necessary prerequisite in the new Selangor DAP.

Ideological departure

In terms of ideology, there is also bound to an obvious departure from the moderate tone adopted by most of the DAP national leaders.

Having a seat on the table now means that DAP grassroots will be able to forward their ideology that is necessarily more radical than the contemporaries.

The grassroots leaders in DAP are mostly Chinese-educated and are more vocal on issues concerning the Chinese community. They are more interested in advocating for stronger vernacular schools, recognition of the UEC (Unified Examination Certificate), strengthening Chinese rights and culture and in the pursuit of full racial equality in the country.

This doesn’t mean that the pursuit of these values and ideology are any less noble than the current batch of national leaders, but they are likely to present significant challenges in collaborating with other component parties in the current volatile political environment.

In the past, the strength of top leaders like Lim Kit Siang and Lim Guan Eng were able to hold the party together in the face of a party crisis. The grip of power is slowly loosening as the grassroots members seem to have different ideas.

This is the first real crack in the most stable and disciplined party; and Pua’s ouster is more than a simple democratic exercise.

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JAMES CHAI works at a law firm. His voyage in life is made less lonely with a family of deep love, friends of good humour and teachers of selfless giving. This affirms his conviction in the common good of people: the better angels of our nature. E-mail him at jameschai.mpuk@gmail.com - Mkini