‘IF DAP IS A RACIST PARTY, I WOULD NOT BE HERE’ – DAP’S MALAY LEADERS GO ON COUNTER-ATTACK AGAINST UMNO-PAS’ TOXIC RANTS

IF opposition parties PAS and Umno are to be believed, DAP will always remain the proverbial anti-Malay party, regardless of which side of the political divide it stands on.

While the party appears to have gotten used to such attacks and has consistently countered them, the recent pairing of the two Malay-majority parties after the 14^thgeneral election appears to have heightened the level of distrust among the Malays towards DAP.

hesitant about Pakatan Harapan ever since Umno and PAS started working together.

“Before the elections, I didn’t detect any awkwardness but since then, there’s some hesitation from my Malay voters,” said the Ketari representative.

“They will still liaise with us when there are issues concerning the villages but some rather meet outside my service centre in Bentong.

“Some of them say they don’t want to be seen going into a DAP office,”   said the former Klang municipal councillor.

The 30-year-old said the change in attitude has been more evident since the PAS-Umno tie-up.

Syefura is among one of the 10 new Malay representatives who contested and won in the last elections under DAP. Although, a Perakian, the former nursing graduate was fielded in Ketari, a state seat under Bentong, Pahang.

Taking over from Lee Chin Chen, Syefura managed to increase her majority to 3,710 from 2,140 in the 48% Malay, Chinese (45%) and Indian (5%) seat.

Bandar Utama assemblyman Jamaliah Jamaluddin (left) invites those who say DAP is anti-Malay to join the party and find out the facts for themselves. – Facebook pic, March 12, 2019.

However, another DAP Malay leader, Jamaliah Jamaluddin, said the anti-DAP sentiments appeared to be differ depending on the location.

“In an urban setting, such as Petaling Jaya, younger Malay voters who still come to our programmes are more concerned about bread-and-butter issues,” said the Bandar Utama assemblyman.

Her constituents’ concerns revolve around job opportunities, governance and transparency and less so about racial privileges.

“They want to know how the new government can improve their future,”  she said.

“This is not to say that Malay voters aren’t concerned about race and religious issues. It’s just not the most crucial concern as they can see through the rhetoric employed by Umno and PAS,” Jamaliah told The Malaysian Insight.

Jamaliah’s Bandar Utama seat in Selangor has 16% Malays, Chinese (74%) and Indians (9%). In the last elections, she increased her majority to 34,769 compared with Yeo Bee Yin’s 30,689.

Syefura concurred, saying that the flow of information in rural areas was much weaker.

“Many still rely on traditional media and if you’re in the village, it could come from the local warung, surau or mosque. That makes things harder, more so when PAS and Umno are going on a race and religious attack.

“If you’re in a rural setting, the race and religious issues can overtake corruption, transparency and even governance issues.”

Toning down

Following PH’s defeat in the recent Cameron Highlands and Semenyih by-elections, several of the pact’s leaders appear to be calling for greater emphasis on the Malay agenda in a big to win votes from the community.

Bersatu leader Rais Yatim said DAP should soften its image so that it was more widely accepted by the Malays, while PKR deputy president Azmin Ali urged the government not to be apologetic about fulfilling its promises for the Bumiputera development agenda.

DAP Johor deputy secretary Sheikh Omar Ali (right) says DAP is committed to defend the provisions in the federal constitution and should not play the race game of Umno and PAS. – Facebook pic, March 12, 2019.

But DAP Johor deputy secretary Sheikh Omar Ali said the way forward is not for DAP to soften its stance as that would play into the old political narrative of Umno and Barisan Nasional.

Instead, DAP must not be apologetic about its stand of protecting the rights of the Malays and Islam in accordance to the federal constitution.

“DAP is committed to defend the provisions in the federal constitution, including the rights of Malays and Islam,” said the board member of Yayasan Dakwah Islamiah Malaysia (Yadim).

However, Syefura admitted that while DAP should not back down against racism and race-based policies, the party’s image would benefit from some restraint when it comes to its leaders’ statements.

“DAP isn’t a racist party or I wouldn’t be here,”   said Syefura.

“But some of the DAP lawmakers’ statements, which are only their personal opinions, have come across as either harsh or provocative.”

Recently, DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng described the PAS-Umno alliance as a “war” against non-Muslims before retracting his statement, while Teluk Intan MP Nga Kor Ming told Chinese media that the country would become like Afghanistan if PAS-Umno took over.

“The party has to work harder with government policies and direction to show it’s not anti-anybody, particularly Malays,” said DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang’s political secretary Syahredzan Johan.

“We must recruit more Malay members to be a more well-rounded multiracial party,” he said.

Jamaliah’s message to those who say DAP is anti-Malay is to join the party.

“If you think DAP is anti-Malay, join it first and then see for yourself,”   she said.

“If you’re not happy, you can always leave after that.” 

THE MALAYSIAN INSIGHT