If the DAP wants to have any meaningful role as a Malaysian political party, it must win electoral seats in the next elections. An election is somewhat like a war (for the voters' hearts). In war, there are certain principles that one needs to apply correctly if one intends to be victorious.

The most important/critical of these principles of war is the 'selection and maintenance of aim'. I wonder what is DAP's for the coming election?

Is it to win government?

Or, is it just to create trouble for the BN, hoping that they would lose majority control of parliamentary representations?

Or, is it to win as many electoral seats as possible for itself, so as to be able to exert an influential/significant impact in the Malaysian political process?

If the DAP selects the incorrect aim, then it will face defeat and can say goodbye to its political future.

The first option would not currently be practical. Nor is it likely to be so for the foreseeable future, because the DAP has in the main failed to attract the Malays into its fold. In fact, in this regard it is today worse off than it once had been. This has been the principal and sad failure of the DAP.

The DAP has been perceived by the Malays as just a non-Malay party. Even though most of the non-Malays including some BN members and supporters) have recognised (grudgingly in some cases) that the DAP fights for a fair and equitable Malaysia and an accountable system, it has failed to project these (its) political qualities/aspirations to the Malay electorate. The personality and leadership of Lim Kit Siang, and the public airing of its internal party strife, have also not contributed favourably to the image of the DAP.

The DAP would have been a better partner for the PRM, and vice versa. But unfortunately (for both parties) the opportunity was lost when PRM merged with Keadilan.

Keadilan on the other hand was handed on a silver platter all the multiracial credentials that DAP

aspires for in vain. But Keadilan has been a great disappointment by failing miserably to exploit these to good use, and to act decisively for all Malaysians as the alternative party to BN.

Keadilan reminds me of the Chinese saying, 'a person having each of his feet on a different boat', except in this case, it has three feet on three different boats the Malay 'boat', the Islamic 'boat', and the multiracial 'boat'.

Unfortunately, when one places one's support on three such boats, one must expect that these will invariably move away in different directions, thus leaving one floundering in the political sea. Keadilan should not be surprised that by meekly hedging all its bets (and forever hiding its political commitment) it has lost the respect and support of many earlier supporters.

Who would want to vote for Keadilan, when its only aim seems to be the wishful restoration of power for its former Umno cadres through the political resurrection of Anwar Ibrahim?

Yes, it has coopted people like Tian Chua to project a multiracial and reformist flavour, and the PRM for added political prestige. It thus tries to project itself as a 'reformasi' party but I have great difficulty reconciling political reformation with a bunch of former Umno members, who were kicked out of Umno because they were very 'feral' during the glory days of Anwar, and thus much feared by the other Umno factions.

Look, I might as well vote for Umno if I am going to even vote for Keadilan. At least Umno is not a vassal-ally of PAS.

The DAP seems to be more interested in the second suggested 'aim', that of toppling the BN, rather than the third, that of winning seats for itself. In this regard, it had until recently gone to the extent of 'sleeping' with PAS, and is still contemplating cooperating with Keadilan, when it is already apparent that Keadilan as a political party is ideologically neither here not there.

Relationship with the former, with its avowed Islamic agenda, has disillusioned and antagonised many of its former supporters, while relationship with the latter, a loser even in the eyes of many erstwhile Keadilan supporters, will not produce any advantage, but rather all the disadvantages.

The DAP should in fact be thankful that some of its former members in Kelantan have resigned rather than lose their comfortable positions in the PAS state government. It will be better off being cleansed of such ill-disciplined and selfish people.

I have admired the DAP in the past for its aspiration and its resoluteness and I hope it will regain its former self (maybe another Lee Lam Thye somewhere out there?), and continue to play a significant role in Malaysian politics, even if only as a credible opposition.

But it must stop messing around with PAS and Keadilan they aren't the Gerakan or PPP of 1969 so forget about them.

It must focus its campaign on winning as many seats as possible in the coming election. It must do this by itself and for itself. When it achieves the victory it can, that will certainly keep both the MCA and Gerakan on their toes, which will benefit Malaysians and indeed all these three parties - by making them more accountable to their constituencies.

Select the third aim and maintain this.