DAP isn't the problem, but a fractured Harapan will be

DAP continues to be the bogeyman of weak Malay politicians across all partisan divides. Be it Pakatan Harapan or BN, DAP seems to have a bull's eye painted on its back. Why?

Malaysia's peaceful coexistence or its division of labour has always been conflated and confused with multiculturalism. This suggests a model where all races can gel as one Malaysian race.

In the process of nation-building – in which DAP has done its level best to create a just and fair Malaysia – it is easy to regard the relative peace and harmony with the need to push for the implementation of the '1Malaysia' concept as fast as possible.

Under the previous administration, 1Malaysia even became a creed that spawned suspicious entities such as 1MDB, 1Malaysia Clinic and many more. 

But Malaysia is composed of many races and cultures coexisting as one country, whose policies of affirmative action need constant tweaking – not just for Malays, but for all ethnic groups.

If DAP can be faulted for anything, it is the hurried tendency to see multiculturalism emerging as the leading template of nation-building, rather than allowing different races and groups to gain their sturdy platforms first.

The Malays, for example, do generally believe that the federation should be Malay-centric. The Federal Constitution does provide the leeway for that interpretation, but this is merely one strand of thought.

Bersatu, for example, believes in the Bumiputera empowerment agenda, and will always root for it, but it must either grow the size the of the GDP or reduce the national debt, which stands at nearly 82 per cent of the GDP. Unless the GDP grows first, the debts will not shrink.

Thus it is dangerous for anyone in Harapan to argue that DAP's seeming kelantangan suara (loudness) is due to being just outspoken or loutish.

Defending DAP

Why is there a need to defend DAP from time to time? This is because Harapan is a new coalition. As a new coalition, it is natural, almost necessary, to go through what educational psychologist Bruce Tuckman called the four stages of "forming-storming-norming and performing."

In forming, groups that were once strangers, even adversaries, are collected as one. Thus Harapan was formed from a collection of parties who were once at war with the doctrine of Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad. 

Be it Amanah, DAP, or PKR, all have had some kinds of conflicts with Mahathir before. Perhaps some of these sentiments may still linger.

According to Tuckman's theory of group development, it is perfectly reasonable to see various faultlines and conflicts in the coalition. After all, genuine peace is built from overcoming conflicts. 

Granted, Harapan has been around for 10 months, which says a lot of the maturity of each group. All the top leaders and their lieutenants have never wavered from the importance of defeating the kleptocracy of BN. 

This is why both the Defence Minister Mohamad Sabu and his deputy Liew Chin Tong spoke of serious and egregious cases of land scams, where army camps were built in the marginal seats of various wobbly ministers. Amanah and DAP were both out to defend the welfare of the veterans.

What DAP and Amanah achieved, with the agreement of PKR and Bersatu, verges on norming. In other words, having overcome their conflicts and rivalries with Mahathir, all parties are now able to see things from the perspective of the top leadership, and the rank and file members themselves have internalised the same parameters of the values.

Road ahead

There is a long way to go before Harapan can attain ultimate performance. 

For example, Harapan hasn't got all the Samurai bonds in Japan to defray the high-interest debts incurred by Goldman Sachs. Harapan hasn't been able to improve palm oil prices. 

Indeed, under the Rural Development Ministry, has only gingerly developed the process of 'looking East'. 

Harapan, quite unfortunately, has not been able to remove all tolls yet, nor paid all the old debts to Sabah and Sarawak. Indeed, it has been accused of backtracking from its manifesto. 

Yet even if Harapan is short on many fronts, at least it has pursued the indictment of former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak with gusto. 

It has also brought his former deputy Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to book. More and more cases of corruption have been exposed by the MACC, precisely because under 'New Malaysia', Harapan is focused on giving new hope to the country.

Tuckman's theory may have been revised on several occasions, but his central thesis has always remained sound. To the degree that the thesis is right, the occasional brickbats in Harapan should not be seen as the beginning of the end. 

Nor should DAP always be singled out, as it is trying it's best like everyone else. The records in Penang alone show a party that is capable of adopting and promoting a Malay agenda. Contributions to mosques and Malay communities between 2008 and 2019 have trended up, not down. 

In contrast, PAS leaders in states like Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang have found themselves enmeshed in a corruption investigation involving tens of millions of ringgit. 

Truth from facts

"Find truths from facts," the late Deng Xiaoping once said. "Feel the pebbles in the riverbed as you crossed it." 

In other words, be careful, prudent and mindful. These are the exact words that resonate with some Malay proverbs, foremost of which is "menarik benang dari tepung" (to pull a strand of hair without disrupting the surface of the fine flour.) 

The folk wisdom of any culture in Malaysia carried with it an understanding of the importance of overcoming conflicts with one another.

The last thing any leader from Harapan should do is to knife one of the coalition partners from the back by accusing it of being a lout. DAP may be candid and speak its mind openly, but it has not been disloyal to Harapan, let us all remember that. 

Were they such a party, they would have received payouts from Umno like PAS allegedly did before slipping out sheepishly from the Pakatan Rakyat coalition in 2015, leaving it to flounder and fail.

DAP was with Harapan and is still with Harapan. Let us not hit it down like a nail.

s one saying goes, "If the only tool you have is a hammer, to treat everything as if it were a nail." Key members in Harapan, especially the ministers, should not see what is not there, and hammer down imaginary nails.

More importantly, what Harapan needs to do urgently is to consolidate the coalition with a cohesive voice in addressing the people’s priorities, rather than dwelling on excessive politics and flying cars.

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RAIS HUSSIN is a supreme council member of Bersatu. He also heads its policy and strategy bureau. - Mkini