The Selangor menteri besar crisis will "dent" Pakatan Rakyat's chances should a snap election be called, but the coalition will still win, says a DAP assemblyperson.

Bukit Gasing assemblyperson Rajiv Rishyakaran believes that if at all it comes down to a snap election, Pakatan Rakyat would be able to top it once again.

“If there is a snap election, we will still prevail. Pakatan will win but it won't as much as before,” Rajiv
told a press conference today.

He said this was because of the loss in the coalition's popularity due to the current prolonged crisis over the post of Selangor menteri besar.

“There will be a dent, but not (to the point) we lose the election. I don't think (the drop in support) is because people base their love for Barisan Nasional, but we may lose people....”

Meanwhile, Damansara Utama assemblyperson Yeo Bee Yin said the state government needed to focus on working harder for the voters than it has done, once the crisis is settled.

“Pakatan Rakyat must continue to work hard and deliver. We have only two more years to deliver and gain back confidence,” she said.

“The Selangor government needs to have better policies, in terms of development and taking care of the people.”

DAP goes rural

The press conference was held to launch ‘Impian Malaysia’, a rebranding of DAP's 'Impian Sabah and Sarawak' programme, conceived to reach out to rural voters through various community programmes.

‘Impian Malaysia’ will translate what DAP has done in Borneo to the peninsula.

Its activities include the building of rural infrastructure projects, setting up ‘Sekolah Demokrasi’ to educate the people on politics and organising the ‘Colour Run’, which is to be held in Teluk Intan on Malaysia Day, Sept 16.

Rocketkini editor Wan Hamidi Wan Hamid will head the programme, with the support of Rajiv, Yeo, Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud as well as party newcomer Syefura Othman.

Yeo said it would be a programme concentrating on equality for Malaysians, without any politics involved.

“The focus of the programme are the Orang Asal, the environment, youth and community well-being” she added.

KAMLES KUMAR is a trainee journalist at Malaysiakini.


Selangor crisis today

9.14am: DAP Youth leader says columnist Ridhuan Tee Abdullah must apologise for suggesting Selangor will be 'darul babi' if MB Khalid Ibrahim is removed

9:48am: PAS rep Saari Sungib says he signed the statutory declaration primarily to reject the incumbent MB, but not to support PKR president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail as widely perceived

12pm: Sinar Harian speculates that PAS has a good chance of getting MB post, if the ruler rejects Wan Azizah or other PKR reps

12.39pm: PAS exco man Sallehen Mukhyi says president Abdul Hadi Awang didn't discuss PKR's Azmin Ali as MB, with sultan in July 31 meeting

2.55pm: MB crisis will hurt Pakatan in polls, but win expected, says DAP's Bukit Gasing rep

3.34pm: Selangor PAS reiterates that they are not interested in the MB post as it belongs to PKR

4.29pm: MB's lawyer denies claim by his aide that his debt was settled via a Middle Eastern bank, PAS MP Khalid Samad says

5.15pm: Sources close to MB says dissolution of the assembly will be one of the options put forth to the sultan