Leave if grassroots reject BA, DAP told
Susan LoonePublished: Mar 12, 2001 12:31 PM | Updated: Jan 29, 2008 6:21 PM
A member of the Barisan Alternatif component party today urged DAP to leave the opposition front if party leaders cannot persuade its grassroots members to accept BA.
"If the DAP leadership is unable to withstand the pressure from its grassroots and decided to leave BA, we, in BA, would accept their decision," said Parti Rakyat Malaysia treasurer Koh Swee Yong.
"However, if this situation happens, it will be very bad for BA and I do not wish to see it happen," he told malaysiakini.
Koh was expressing his regrets over the decision by Sarawak DAP to pull out from BA early this month.
On March 3, national news agency Bernama reported Sarawak DAP chairperson Richard Wong Ho Leng as saying that Barisan Nasional component parties can no longer accuse DAP of supporting PAS on the creation of a fundamentalist Islamic state in the country.
"The fact that our decision to withdraw from BA has been accepted and endorsed by the party's central executive committee is proof that we have our own autonomy on political matters," he was reported to have said in a press conference.
Wong also added that although Sarawak DAP has withdrawn from BA, it will continue to co-operate with other opposition parties in opposing the ruling BN government in the forthcoming state elections.
Contradictory statements
Koh added he noticed that after DAP joined BA, DAP's central leadership and grassroots seemed to be on a different plane from BA as the former's statements and actions often contradicted with the latter's.
"For example, DAP Selangor, without consulting other BA component parties, had issued a statement in the Chinese newspapers saying that DAP and PAS had agreed that the seat allocations in Selangor for the next general elections would remain as before," said Koh.
"This is a clear indication that BA, or PRM and Keadilan, does not exist at all for DAP Selangor," he added.
Koh pointed out that in 1998, DAP leaders decided to join BA due to the political development then.
Nevertheless, he added, the DAP grassroots have failed to understand the current political situation and continued to issue statements that confuse other BA component parties and the public over the allocation of seats.
"However, DAP should not abandon BA as their cooperation is very much needed in the coalition," Koh said.
"DAP must instead analyse its grassroots needs and explain to them that in order to stay in BA, some sacrifices must be made."
Koh said that all BA component party members have to try and accommodate each other's wants, whatever their ideology or opinions, in line with new political developments in the opposition front.
The opposition, he added, must forge a new understanding and focus their mindset to challenge the old political framework set up by BN to bring about a just, democratic, free and transparent government.
"If the DAP leadership is unable to withstand the pressure from its grassroots and decided to leave BA, we, in BA, would accept their decision," said Parti Rakyat Malaysia treasurer Koh Swee Yong.
"However, if this situation happens, it will be very bad for BA and I do not wish to see it happen," he told malaysiakini.
Koh was expressing his regrets over the decision by Sarawak DAP to pull out from BA early this month.
On March 3, national news agency Bernama reported Sarawak DAP chairperson Richard Wong Ho Leng as saying that Barisan Nasional component parties can no longer accuse DAP of supporting PAS on the creation of a fundamentalist Islamic state in the country.
"The fact that our decision to withdraw from BA has been accepted and endorsed by the party's central executive committee is proof that we have our own autonomy on political matters," he was reported to have said in a press conference.
Wong also added that although Sarawak DAP has withdrawn from BA, it will continue to co-operate with other opposition parties in opposing the ruling BN government in the forthcoming state elections.
Contradictory statements
Koh added he noticed that after DAP joined BA, DAP's central leadership and grassroots seemed to be on a different plane from BA as the former's statements and actions often contradicted with the latter's.
"For example, DAP Selangor, without consulting other BA component parties, had issued a statement in the Chinese newspapers saying that DAP and PAS had agreed that the seat allocations in Selangor for the next general elections would remain as before," said Koh.
"This is a clear indication that BA, or PRM and Keadilan, does not exist at all for DAP Selangor," he added.
Koh pointed out that in 1998, DAP leaders decided to join BA due to the political development then.
Nevertheless, he added, the DAP grassroots have failed to understand the current political situation and continued to issue statements that confuse other BA component parties and the public over the allocation of seats.
"However, DAP should not abandon BA as their cooperation is very much needed in the coalition," Koh said.
"DAP must instead analyse its grassroots needs and explain to them that in order to stay in BA, some sacrifices must be made."
Koh said that all BA component party members have to try and accommodate each other's wants, whatever their ideology or opinions, in line with new political developments in the opposition front.
The opposition, he added, must forge a new understanding and focus their mindset to challenge the old political framework set up by BN to bring about a just, democratic, free and transparent government.
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