Reference here is made to Susan Loone's 'PAS-DAP: a marriage on the rocks?' (July 2).

The BA's Manifesto's pledge to "... create a favourable atmosphere - through the provision of infrastructure, education and legislation - towards affirmation of Islam as a way of life (ad-deen) among Muslims, while ensuring the rights of non-Muslims to practise their respective religions or beliefs" appears so ambiguous that DAP can construe that to mean a secular government, and PAS, an Islamic one.

According to the writer, BA's secretariat chairperson, and Keadilan deputy president, Dr Chandra Muzaffar said that: "The BA manifesto makes no mention of an Islamic state. Neither does it promise to establish a secular state."

In other words, the manifesto was deliberately crafted to be general and vague so that its terms are accommodative of whatever inconsistent agenda of the component parties and yet presents to whosoever amongst them (whether PAS, Keadilan or DAP) that captures more parliamentary seats, the flexibility to interpret the manifesto in a manner according to its party's individual agenda.

PAS spiritual leader and Kelantan Mentri Besar Nik Aziz Nik Mat's distinction between 'Islamic state' and 'Islamic community' seems to me to be a play of words.

The silence of the two Malay-based but multi-racial parties, Parti Rakyat Malaysia and Keadilan, reinforces public perception of a conspiracy to camouflage the double or triple-edged meanings and purposes of the BA's manifesto.

It is an issue of credibility. A vague manifesto to give a semblance of unity of purposes for winning an election when the component parties are actually divided in secret agendas is unprincipled because far from clarifying the true motives, it obfuscates and takes advantage of the simplicity and gullibility of the electorate to secure their support.

This lack of candor between the BA's component parties inter se and between them and the electorate as evinced by their vague manifesto, lending to different interpretations, is very unsettling on the issue of good faith. The electorate does not want to be taken for a ride.

In order to dispel public perception of a conspiracy to mislead, the time is opportune for each and every component party of the Barisan Alternatif to declare honestly and publicly its or their true intentions and how they would seek to implement these purposes within the terms of their common manifesto.