The Penang PPP Youth and Women’s wings have issued an ultimatum to Barisan Nasional (BN) top leaders - mend your ways or we will take our party out of the coalition and become independent.
This was the thrust of a resolution passed at their joint annual convention on Sunday, which also urged the federal government to implement an all-Malaysian style of governance.
Some 200 members of the wings had earlier attended a three-hour brainstorming and soul-searching convention, focusing mainly on March general election results and the future direction of PPP and BN.
State chief Dr M Loga Bala Mohan said the resolution resulted from strong sentiments that the Umno-led Putrajaya administration had failed to comprehend undercurrents among the electorate prior to the polls.
He said the two PPP wings want changes that are in line with the people’s aspirations.
“They feel that the federal government has yet to carry out the (comprehensive) reforms demanded by the electorate. Some (members) feel it would be ideal for all BN parties to integrate into a single party,” he said.
Loga Bala Mohan also hinted that the resolution was reflective of the views of party members across the country. Penang has some 9,500 members, with 40 branches in 13 divisions.
Speaking on the condition anonymity, another state leader claimed that members were already of the view that the party should leave BN even before the general election.
Since there is a vacuum in Pakatan Rakyat for an Indian-based party, PPP grassroots members have felt that it would be timely to join the opposition front.
“They dislike Umno’s political hegemony, arrogance and domination of BN,” he said.
However, party leaders managed to turn the tide and chose to stay in BN “to safeguard their selfish political interests, at the expense of the interests of members and the party”.
Race-based politics loses pull
In the March polls, riding on an anti-establishment wave, opposition parties made unprecedented gains, denying BN its two-thirds in Parliamentary. They also wrested control of four state governments and retained one.
Loga Bala Mohan attributed the victory to public disillusionment with communal-based policies and the BN’s system of governance.
“All peninsula-based parties in BN suffered severe reverses mainly because the people wanted a move away from race-based politics to multi-racial governance,” he said.
Due to this, PPP, Gerakan, MCA and MIC have applied new strategies to re-brand and re-position themselves to stay relevant in the rapidly changing political landscape.
Although BN comprises parties representing all ethnic groups, it failed to convince voters to remain on its side.
“It clearly shows that Malaysians are against domination by one party in the name of the coalition. If BN can reform itself, we can regain lost ground. Otherwise it is heading for sure defeat in the next election,” added Loga Bala Mohan.
Athi Veranggan
malaysiakini
25/11/08
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