WITH UMNO, PAS OPENLY DISOWNING THE NON-MALAYS – MCA, MIC & GERAKAN MUST STAND ON THE SIDE OF PAKATAN TO FIGHT THE DESTRUCTION OF MULTI-RACIAL MALAYSIA

Following triumphant collaborations in the Cameron Highlands and Semenyih by-elections, the Umno-PAS marriage is now in a honeymoon phase with both parties appreciative of each other’s strengths and voter base.

This leaves MCA and MIC in the unenviable role of jilted lovers forced to pick up the pieces. To make matters worse, their strength and influence is only a tiny fraction of what it was just a decade ago.

Should they wish to see examples of parties cut adrift from the masses, they need look no further than erstwhile colleagues, Gerakan and the People’s Progressive Party (MyPPP).

Both parties do not have any parliamentary representation, and are facing challenges in reinventing themselves.

Gerakan, which held the Penang chief minister’s post from 1969 to 2008 under Lim Chong Eu and Koh Tsu Koon, pulled out of BN on June 23, 2018.

Speaking to Malaysiakini, party president Dominic Lau (photo) slammed recent developments in the coalition.

“Regressing to communal politics based on race and religion is not healthy for the nation, polarisation is the last thing we want for a ‘New Malaysia’.

“All political parties have the responsibility to foster national unity. Umno and PAS should represent and fight for all Malaysians, they should lead the efforts in promoting social integration, instead of propagating divisive race-based politics.

“Malaysians need an opposition which is open-minded and professional instead of one that exploits the same issues of race and religion for its own political interest. It’s time to stop separating the nation based on differences, fear and hatred. We should liberate ourselves from old politicking,” he said.

Lau concedes it’s been a struggle for his party since leaving BN. “After pulling out from BN, Gerakan adopted grassroots leadership to consolidate the party first and we started to prepare our machinery for GE15,” he said.

While it may be difficult for the party to go it on its own, Lau remains open to fresh alliances. “Nothing is permanent in politics except change. The most important thing is to strengthen the party and we will only consider a coalition we share the same ideology, direction and objectives.

“Our mission is to make sure Gerakan returns to Parliament and we win back state seats we plan to contest.”

‘Looking beyond personal gain’

Unlike the other parties, MyPPP’s heyday was in the distant past. While enjoying a renaissance in the 1990s under the leadership of M Kayveas, the party never regained its footing as a force to be reckoned with on the electoral stage.

To make matters worse, there are now two rival camps in the party, with Kayveas leading one team, and former deputy minister Maglin D’Cruz heading another.

MyPPP deputy secretary-general Simon Sabapathy (photo) is in the latter camp, and concedes that it’s hard for the party to move forward until its status with the Registrar of Societies is clarified.

“Both factions in the ongoing PPP dispute have appealed the decision to deregister the party, and are awaiting the decision of the Home Minister. Until then it’s too early to talk about mergers or building a new coalition,” he told Malaysiakini.

Nonetheless, Sabapathy said that the Umno-PAS marriage was not a healthy development. “MyPPP has always been a multiracial party and never believed in race or religion-based politics. This new tie-up is a step backwards for racial harmony, a step backwards for the country.”

While PPP and Gerakan professed to be multiracial, each was in practice dominated by a single race, Indian and Chinese respectively. MCA and MIC were founded on the premise of race-based struggles.

All four have paid lip service to the idea of merging in the past, but there has been very little concrete action toward this.

Party sources have said that control of the many assets accumulated during BN’s long stint in power is holding them back.

Assets owned, either wholly or partially by the parties include large buildings such as Wisma MCA, Menara PGRM, Wisma MIC, welfare funds, media outlets and other cash assets.

Sabapathy concurs, saying, “It’s all about who contributed how much and whether not they are expecting a share in return.

“Ideally, mergers are decided taking everything into consideration, especially the good of the members and the country as a whole. Leaders must look beyond personal gain and interest.”

MKINI