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DAP nation-wide must be prepared for three-cornered contests, both parliamentary and state assembly, in the next general elections

With the demise of Pakatan Rakyat as a result of the PAS Muktamar resolution on June 3, 2015, DAP nation-wide must be prepared for three-cornered contests, both parliamentary and state assembly, in the next general elections.

DAP will co-operate with all progressive political parties and forces, including PKR and the progressive PAS leaders who are in the process of forming a new political party, to save Malaysia from becoming a failed state because of rampant corruption, socio-economic injustices and collapse of good governance so as to re-set the country on the correct course towards an united, harmonious, ethical, democratic, just, progressive and prosperous Malaysia.

I feel sad at the demise of Pakatan Rakyat after seven years of a common political struggle based on the Pakatan Rakyat Common Policy Framework (CPF) and the operational consensus principle that any PR decision must be based on the consensus of the three component parties, but when the PAS President Datuk Seri Hadi repeatedly violated the PR CPF and the PR consensus principle, even ignoring the decision of the previous PAS Central Committee, followed by the PAS Muktmar resolution to sever ties between PAS and DAP, we must accept the unmistakable signs that the PR had died. Continue reading “DAP nation-wide must be prepared for three-cornered contests, both parliamentary and state assembly, in the next general elections”

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Why is Hadi parroting the line of UMNO propagandists and cybertroopers accusing the DAP of being “chauvinist” in wanting to have local government elections?

PAS President Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang is quoted as calling the DAP “chauvinist” for trying to restore local council elections in his press conference inBatu Pahat on Sunday.

I am amazed as to why the head of a political party which rivals UMNO is parroting the line of UMNO propagandists and cybertroopers who had been accusing the DAP of being “chauvinistic” in wanting to have local government elections, as one would expect more originality and even creativity from Hadi!

I am particularly surprised by Hadi’s charge of “chauvinism”, after he and PAS leaders had asked for DAP agreement after the 13th General Election that Hadi should be seated at the second Opposition seat next to the Parliamentary Opposition Leader, although PAS parliamentary representation was the smallest with 21 MPs as compared to DAP’s 38 and PKR’s 30.

However, without hesitation, I consented to the arrangement for Hadi to be seated in the second Parliamentary seat for Pakatan Rakyat benches, which would not be the case if DAP is “chauvinistic” as Hadi is now charging, as we would then be subjecting all considerations to the question of racial interest.

However, I had no qualms in immediately agreeing to the PAS request for Hadi to be seated in the second Opposition front-bench seat in Parliament although PAS had the least number of MPs among the three Pakatan Rakyat parties, for we in the DAP are always prepared to rise above self and party interests if this would serve the larger purpose of promoting the Pakatan Rakyat cause of bringing about political change in Malaysia towards restoring freedom, justice, human rights and dignity and save Malaysia from becoming a failed state because of rampant corruption, injustices and collapse of good governance.

It is to say the least, an “unkind cut” that after securing the second seating in Parliament by pleading the cause of ‘face” for the Malay ground and among PAS members, for Hadi to turn around and accuse me and DAP of being “chauvinist”. Continue reading “Why is Hadi parroting the line of UMNO propagandists and cybertroopers accusing the DAP of being “chauvinist” in wanting to have local government elections?”

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PAS Syura Council decision a non-event as it is completely overshadowed by latest developments in PAS where the two top PAS leaders have become Najib’s strongest defenders

The decision of the PAS Syura Council endorsing the PAS Muktamar resolution last month for PAS to sever ties with DAP is a non-event, as almost all Malaysians know that Pakatan Rakyat had been killed by the new PAS leadership at the PAS Muktamar more than a month ago on June 3.

I had said at the time that with Pakatan Rakyat dead after the PAS Muktamar resolution, what was left to be done were the funeral rites for Pakatan Rakyat.

I must admit that I had not expected that it would take more than a month for the final funeral rites for Pakatan Rakyat to be completed.

The PAS Syura Council decision is a non-event as it has been completely overshadowed by the latest developments under the new PAS leadership, with the two top PAS leaders emerging as the strongest defenders of Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak at a time when Najib’s leadership is being increasingly questioned and challenged even in internal Umno circles because of the Prime Minister’s inability to establish his innocence and integrity in the face of unprecedented scandals like the 1MDB scandal. Continue reading “PAS Syura Council decision a non-event as it is completely overshadowed by latest developments in PAS where the two top PAS leaders have become Najib’s strongest defenders”

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Apology that Pakatan Rakyat is dead but vow that PR Common Policy Framework aspirations for an united, inclusive, progressive, just and prosperous Malaysia will live on and continue to be basis of DAP struggle for a new Malaysia until there is a new government in Putrajaya

I want to apologise to the people of Malaysia that after seven years, Pakatan Rakyat is dead but we vow that the Pakatan Rakyat Common Policy Framework aspirations for an united, inclusive, progressive, just and prosperous Malaysia will live on and continue to be the basis of DAP struggle for a new Malaysia until there is a new government in Putrajaya.

We in the DAP recognize the political reality that under the present circumstances, no single race or even single political party can rule multi-racial, multi-religious and multi-cultural Malaysia and that the Federal Government from Putrajaya and the various state governments will have to be formed from a coalition of political parties.

DAP is prepared to be a partner of coalition governments, but it must be a coalition of common political principles and objectives and not a coalition of self-interests and political opportunism just to cling to political offices and position.

This is why the DAP Central Executive Committee at its meeting on June 15 took two decisions:

• Recognition that the PAS top leadership had killed Pakatan Rakyat after the PAS Muktamar resolution to sever ties with DAP and repeated violation by the top PAS leadership of the PR Common Policy Framework and the PR consensus operational principle in the past one year;

• Full support to the Selangor Mentri Besar Azmin Ali to reframe the Selangor state government with a new functioning coalition based on the PR Common Policy Framework and the Selangor Pakatan Rakyat general election manifesto.

Continue reading “Apology that Pakatan Rakyat is dead but vow that PR Common Policy Framework aspirations for an united, inclusive, progressive, just and prosperous Malaysia will live on and continue to be basis of DAP struggle for a new Malaysia until there is a new government in Putrajaya”

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Fissures appear in Umno as crisis deepens

By Bridget Welsh
Malaysiakini
Jul 10, 2015

COMMENT As Prime Minister and Finance Minister Najib Razak faces explosive allegations of embezzlement, corruption and electoral manipulation that go to the very core of his leadership and the legitimacy of his government, the country is plunged into yet another crisis.

Sadly crises have become common developments of the Najib government, whose responses to 1MDB even before the revelations by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) brought to the fore questions of economic mismanagement which has undermined the reputation of the Malaysia’s financial institutions.

For many, the issue at hand is what Najib will do – he has already done serious damage to the country and unfortunately every day he stays in office, his leadership negatively affects the country’s reputation. Not only is Malaysia’s international credibility is on the line, its currency, access to foreign capital and future economic prosperity are at risk.

Unlike his father, Malaysia’s second premier Abdul Razak Hussien, Najib has apparently chosen to put himself first rather than the country. During his tenure, Najib has distinguished himself from Dr Mahathir Mohamad in his effectiveness in using the country’s political institutions to strengthen his personal position. He has indeed taken the office of the prime minister to a new low.

Najib deserves a fair and impartial investigation of the allegations made by WSJ. This can be done if he opts to go on leave during the investigation period and appoints respected impartial individuals to lead the investigation. Neither of these have been done so far, as the approach has been to issue denials, thus raising suspicions of a potential cover-up, and this sends conflicting signals about the investigation.

In a ‘fox guarding the hen house dynamic,’ members of the task force assigned to investigate are neither impartial nor distant from developments. In some cases, their job was to review these bank transactions and as such should also be subject to an independent investigation in their failure to act before the WSJ report. The lack on impartiality of the task force does not build credibility, especially in international markets.

Najib’s decision to hold onto power and stay in office compromises any investigation due to the inherent conflict of interests involved and this assures that any departure will be an even harder landing for himself, his family, his political party, Umno, and worst of all, the country. Continue reading “Fissures appear in Umno as crisis deepens”

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Bekas setiausaha agung PKR dedah Anwar dihina ketika krisis Selangor

Thd Malaysian Insider
9 July 2015

Bekas setiausaha agung PKR Datuk Saifuddin Nasution Ismail mendedahkan Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim dikasari individu dipercayai presiden PAS Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang ketika mahu membincangkan kemelut menteri besar Selangor tahun lalu.

Walaupun tidak menyatakan identiti Hadi secara langsung, Saifuddin mengimbas peristiwa ketika dirinya menemani ketua umum PKR berjumpa dengan individu terbabit untuk mengadakan perbincangan.

“Masih ingat saat aku menemani Datuk Seri Anwar berjumpa dengannya. Bagaimana Datuk Seri Anwar diaibkan dengan bahasa yang cukup kasar,” katanya dalam status Facebook hari ini.‎

Perbincangan itu dipercayai merujuk kepada ‎pertemuan singkat Anwar dengan Hadi di Terengganu untuk menukar jawatan menteri besar Selangor yang ketika itu disandang Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim. Continue reading “Bekas setiausaha agung PKR dedah Anwar dihina ketika krisis Selangor”

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What WILL break the camel’s back?

Hussein Hamid
30/06/2015

Scandal after scandal but still the ruling party and its leaders continue to hold control over us. What make Malaysians wake up to the rot that is now all around them?

Last week saw the Mara Dudley House corruption story break in Melbourne and the arrest of Xavier Justo Andre in Bangkok. As in all things Malaysian, however tenuous and fragile the link, all things lead back to the Prime Minister Najib Razak – and rightly so.

The troubles that beset Najib’s administration are self inflicted. They are not caused by Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Anwar Ibrahim, not by Lim Kit Siang or by Hadi Awang. Nor were the Chinese or the Christians responsible.

The state of the global economy can be labelled a contributing factor only because in good times corruption and bad governance by inept politicians can be ignored or simply papered over as the rakyat’s attention can be distracted by the feel good spending by the government on projects that seemingly benefit the public.

But at a time when money is a premium and the lack of it is already being felt by those most in need of it – the millions being lost through capers such as the Mara Dudley House purchase and the 1MDB stretches the ability of the rakyat to tolerate anymore what Barisan Nasional is doing in the name of government.

The question is without doubt more pressing when the ailing opposition Pakatan Rakyat is in no position to offer a credible alternative. Continue reading “What WILL break the camel’s back?”

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PAS is past. Masa untuk PR2.0

– Riesya H.
The Malaysian Insider
29 June 2015

Ditakdirkan negara kita dijajah Belanda (dan bukan British), dan sistem pilihan raya kita semacam sistem di Indonesia, negara kita ini bukan lagi milik Umno/Barisan Nasional. Tetapi sudah menjadi milik rakyat. Pakatan Rakyat (dengan undi popular 5.6 juta), jauh meninggalkan BN (Cuma 5.2juta). Congak mudahnya, BN Cuma layak menerima 105 kerusi. Selebihnya adalah kerusi milik rakyat. PR.

Tapi, apakan daya. Kata P.Ramlee, “cubaaan!!”

Perlu direkodkan, dari 5.6juta undi PR, sejumlah 1.8juta adalah undi pemula. Orang yang pertama kali mengundi PR. Orang yang mempertaruhkan harapan demi masa depan yang baru. Orang yang teruja dengan slogan “ini kali lah”. Continue reading “PAS is past. Masa untuk PR2.0”

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UMNO party polls deferred by 18 months is in one sense good news as Najib will be an easier target in 14GE with avalanche of scandals and continued festering of internal UMNO warfare

In one sense, the 18-month postponement of UMNO party polls is good news as Datuk Najib Razak will be an easier target in the 14th General Election with the avalanche of scandals – socio-economic and political – as well as the continued festering of internal UMNO warfare.

Never before in Malaysia has a Prime Minister amassed such a huge brew of socio-economic and political scandals within so short a time, creating a most explosive mix with far-reaching consequences in the next general election.

Umno secretary-general Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor was not being candid when he merely admitted that the postponement of the Umno election was due to “current political crisis” but not related to 1MDB, as the truth was that the postponement was caused by “current political crisis arising from scandals like 1MDB”.

Unlike the 13GE, the RM42 billion 1MDB scandal will be the lead “scandal” in the 14GE although desperate attempts are being made to defuse it, including an elaborate script of “The Empire Strikes Back” based on the notion that the allegations of the 1MDB scandals were all based on the “tampered” emails (not only unsubstantiated to date but clearly impossible) including the last desperate option of a winding-up and asset-stripping of 1MDB.

But even after being wound up, 1MDB scandal will remain alive in the 14GE although it will be one in a shoal of seething multiple scandals – whether economic and financial like the Felda Global Venture (FGV), Tabung Haji, GST, weak Malaysian ringgit and now MARA’s Australia property scandals, or socio-political like Najib’s major failures including his signature 1Malaysia Policy, Global Movement of Moderates initiative, the National Transformation Programme, the worst racial and religious polarization in the nation’s history. Continue reading “UMNO party polls deferred by 18 months is in one sense good news as Najib will be an easier target in 14GE with avalanche of scandals and continued festering of internal UMNO warfare”

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Which is in worse shape: BN or opposition?

– Koon Yew Yin
The Malaysian Insider
26 June 2015

Although it is a long way to the next general election, the current developments we are seeing will, in my opinion, be decisive in shaping the outcome and winner of the next elections. Firstly, we have seen a lot of adverse publicity given the break up of opposition pact, Pakatan Rakyat.

Pro-Barisan Nasional (BN) observers and also some disillusioned opposition supporters are claiming this is dealing a death blow to the opposition’s election hopes. But is this so? I beg to differ from them.

What is happening to the Pakatan is actually a blessing in disguise for them. In fact, it is a big blessing. This is because if we look at the political configuration closely, it is not that the opposition coalition is breaking up. It is the hard line faction of Pas that is splitting from the rest of the Pakatan. This faction wants to chart a future for the country based on Islamic law and a more rigid Islamic state. But can they succeed?

Well, despite the conservative candidates sweeping all the leadership positions in the recent Pas elections, deep down I am sure that they realise that they represent only a minority of the Malay Muslim population. My reading is that the majority of Muslims do not want a more fundamentalist Islamic society. They may have concerns about some aspects of modern life and western values. But even the less educated among them know what has been happening in fundamentalist Islamic nations. Continue reading “Which is in worse shape: BN or opposition?”

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DAP had never aspired to be a Chinese or non-Malay party and we will double up in our resolve to be a fully Malaysian party strengthening our Malay, Dayak and Kadazandusun membership in keeping with our Malaysian ideals and aspirations

There are those who forecast that with the PAS Muktamar resolution to cut off relations with DAP spelling the end of the seven-year-old Pakatan Rakyat, DAP will become a narrow-minded Chinese or non-Malay political party.

They cannot be more wrong. Firstly, DAP had never aspired to be a Chinese or non-Malay party. Right from the beginning during DAP’s formation in 1966, DAP had pledged itself to pursue a Malaysian Dream, not a Chinese Dream, an Indian Dream or a Malay Dream.

This is why DAP is the first political party in the country to be Pan-Malaysian, establishing branches in Sarawak and Sabah before any other political party in the country.

All through the past five decades, DAP had been accused of being anti-Malay and anti-Islam by UMNO, because of UMNO fear that the DAP will be able to make inroads into UMNO spheres of influence with our Malaysian political appeal, transcending race, religion or region.

No political party seeking support from all Malaysians can be anti-Malay or anti-Islam, or for that matter, anti-Chinese, anti-Indian, anti-Dayak, anti-Kadazandusun or anti-Buddhism, anti-Christianity, anti-Hindiuism or anti-Sikkhism.

The battle against such lies and falsehoods had been a particularly uphill battle for the DAP because we had to face the full onslaught of the UMNO juggernaut with its control and ownership of the mass media, particularly in the era before the advent of Internet, the Internet news portals and the social media.

However difficult the terrain, DAP had never wavered from our objectives and principles that the DAP had been formed not to fight for any one race but for all races and Malaysians in the country! Continue reading “DAP had never aspired to be a Chinese or non-Malay party and we will double up in our resolve to be a fully Malaysian party strengthening our Malay, Dayak and Kadazandusun membership in keeping with our Malaysian ideals and aspirations”

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Prospects for coalition making, post-muktamar

By Steven Sim
Malaysiakini
Jun 23, 2015

MP SPEAKS Two months ago, Lim Kit Siang proposed a crazy idea; a post-BN post-Pakatan Rakyat “Save Malaysia” grand coalition. Many criticised him, including allies and supporters and even DAP members.

Lim, the DAP parliamentary leader, was inviting Malaysians, including Malaysian politicians, to “think the unthinkable”, going beyond the much cherished two-party system into something else.

What does this “something else” look like?

I was to discover part of the answer when I joined Lim on a trip to the Middle East. Continue reading “Prospects for coalition making, post-muktamar”

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Pakatan Rakyat crisis might have come earlier if PR had won majority of seats in 13 GE as Hadi had never accepted Anwar as PR candidate for Prime Minister

In response to media query, I want to stress that I do not want to be involved in polemcis with the PAS President, Hadi Awang who claimed that Pakatan Rakyat is not dead yet and that the coalition still exists.

The PAS Muktamar resolution cutting ties with DAP is the last straw that breaks the camel’s back as for a year Pakatan Rakyat had existed in name but not in fact, because Hadi had violated the two basic and bedrock Pakatan Rakyat principles, the PR Common Policy Framework and the consensus operational principle that the agreement of all three PR component parties are needed for any PR motion to be made and that no single leader has the veto power to override the decisions of the PR Leadership Council.

Hadi not only violated the PR Common Policy Framework but acted in utter disregard of the PR consensus operational principle as if he could override decisions taken by the PR Leadership Council in the same way he had no qualms about overriding decisions taken by the PAS Central Working Committee.

In fact, the Pakatan Rakyat crisis might have come even earlier if Pakatan Rakyat had been successful in winning the majority of the parliamentary seats in the 13GE two years ago as Hadi had never accepted Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as the PR candidate to be Prime Minister of Malaysia.

With such a background, I find it astounding that Hadi could now claim that Pakatan Rakyat is not dead, when the PR Secretariat had for the past year find it almost impossible to fix a meeting when the PAS President could attend. Continue reading “Pakatan Rakyat crisis might have come earlier if PR had won majority of seats in 13 GE as Hadi had never accepted Anwar as PR candidate for Prime Minister”

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Adieu, Pakatan Rakyat

Syerleena Abdul Rashid
The Malaysian Insider
19 June 2015

After seven years, leaders from both PKR and DAP decided it was time to bury Pakatan Rakyat. Although, this decision came as a shock to most Malaysians, to some of us, it was just a matter of time.

DAP’s Lim Kit Siang released a statement stating, “A fortnight ago, I gave my most pessimistic forecast that in two weeks’ time, there may not be a Pakatan Rakyat left. It would appear that my worst-case forecast for Pakatan Rakyat has come to pass and all that is left are the funeral rites.

And on June 17, 2015, the coalition of seven years officially ceased to “exist” in its present form when PKR president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail confirmed the coalition’s fate and marked the end of the seven-year-old pact.

In these seven years, Malaysians started to see things differently. Continue reading “Adieu, Pakatan Rakyat”

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Let us move on and keep faith with the hopes of Malaysians for change in the 13GE to ensure that although there is no more Pakatan Rakyat, the PR Common Policy Framework of national unity, justice and prosperity of Malaysians must remain achievable goals in 14GE

Yesterday, PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang claimed that Pakatan Rakyat is not dead yet and that the coalition still exists.

This is in contrast to the statement to The Malaysian Insider by the Dewan Ulama Chief and Johor PAS Commissioner Datuk Dr. Mahfodz Mohamed who said yesterday that he does not regret the PAS Muktamar motion to cut ties with DAP, even though it led to the dissolution of Pakatan Rakyat (PR).

Mahfodz Mohamed said they were aware of the repercussions when passing the emergency motion during the ulama wing’s congress on June 3, which was subsequently adopted by the 61st PAS Muktamar without debate.

He said:

“To me, there is no turning back, there is no U-turn, because all this while we had been patient in the face of everything PKR and DAP did to PAS. We never responded rudely.

“But when we did that during the congress, we knew there would be no U-turn. We had thought it through, and we knew the consequences of our actions.”

Continue reading “Let us move on and keep faith with the hopes of Malaysians for change in the 13GE to ensure that although there is no more Pakatan Rakyat, the PR Common Policy Framework of national unity, justice and prosperity of Malaysians must remain achievable goals in 14GE”

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PAS will never get back non-Muslim support, says Mat Sabu

by Looi Sue-Chern
The Malaysian Insider
19 June 2015

Mohamad Sabu is one of PAS’s most popular leaders, outside his party and among non-Muslims, that is. Internally, the party booted him out at the recent elections where he failed to defend the deputy president’s post. In the first of a two-part interview, Mat Sabu, as he is popularly known, mourns the passing of an Islamist party that enjoyed the support of non-Muslims for a period and fears it may never regain that trust.

Even if he is voted back into the PAS leadership, the Islamist party will never regain its non-Muslim support, said former deputy president Mohamad Sabu.

Better known as Mat Sabu and popular with the non-Muslim crowd, he also told of how hard he had to work to persuade PAS grassroots members to go out and rally with non-Muslims in earlier demonstrations led by electoral reform group Bersih.

Mat Sabu painted a bleak future for the only opposition party with a religious ideology that had contributed to the death of Pakatan Rakyat (PR).

He said there was now no remedy which could fix the situation for PAS to get back its non-Muslim support.

“Non-Muslims are disappointed and broken-hearted by the whole situation.

“Furthermore, PAS is now led by personalities from the east coast who rarely come into contact with Malaysians of other races and faiths,” he told The Malaysian Insider. Continue reading “PAS will never get back non-Muslim support, says Mat Sabu”

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No cause for dejection or despondency over the death of PR – there must instead be greater resolve and commitment to pursue the inclusive Malaysian Dream of unity, justice, dignity and prosperity for all Malaysians through a new political realignment

(Scroll down for English text)

Tidak perlu bersedih dan putus di atas kematian Pakatan Rakyat – sepatutnya harus ada ketetapan yang lebih kuat serta komitmen untuk terus memburu Impian Malaysia yang inklusif ke arah perpaduan, keadilan, maruah dan kemakmuran buat semua rakyat Malaysia melalui susunan politik yang baru

Nampaknya ramai yang kecewa dengan kematian Pakatan Rakyat, namun ini bukan alasan untuk merasa sedih dan kecewa di saat sepatutnya wujud ketetapan yang lebih kuat serta komitmen untuk terus memburu Impian Malaysia yang inklusif ke arah perpaduan, keadilan, maruah dan kemakmuran buat semua rakyat Malaysia menjelang pilihanraya umum ke-14.

Meskipun perjuangan politik tujuh tahun Pakatan Rakyat telah berakhir ekoran pelanggaran-pelanggaran serius terhadap Dasar Bersama Pakatan Rakyat oleh PAS, kita percaya bahawa impian dan visi ke arah Malaysia baru yang memiliki perpaduan nasional, persefahaman antara kaum dan agama, serta rasa hormat, keadilan, akauntabiliti, urus tadbir yang baik, menamatkan rasuah dan salahguna kuasa, memelihara maruah, mempunyai sistem pendidikan, kesihatan, perumahan, pengangkutan yang baik serta persekitaran yang selamat untuk semua rakyat Malaysia harus menjadi objektif utama bagi PRU ke-14.

Atas tujuan ini, DAP akan bekerjasama dengan parti-parti politik dan kuasa-kuasa politik yang sependapat, demi membawa muafakat politik baru yang komited terhadap prinsip-prinsip tersebut dan wawasan Impian Malaysia.

Kami di DAP tidak akan bekerjasama dengan pimpinan PAS yang telah mencabul Dasar Bersama Pakatan Rakyat, tetapi bersedia bekerjasama dengan kuasa-kuasa politik dan rakyat Malaysia yang komited terhadap Dasar Bersama tersebut, termasuklah ahli-ahli PAS di pelbagai peringkat yang tidak menolak dan mengabaikan Dasar Bersama tersebut. Continue reading “No cause for dejection or despondency over the death of PR – there must instead be greater resolve and commitment to pursue the inclusive Malaysian Dream of unity, justice, dignity and prosperity for all Malaysians through a new political realignment”

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Pakatan ends, and the lessons for a new pact

COMMENTARY BY THE MALAYSIAN INSIDER
18 June 2015

Pakatan Rakyat (PR) is finally and formally dead, and it is surprising that it lasted as long as it did. Its predecessor, Barisan Alternatif (BA), lasted a scant two years and was scuttled for the very same reasons – Islamist policies.

To be fair, PR was born out of a simple idea of avoiding three-cornered contests and having straight fights with the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN), rather than forming governments prior to the 2008 general election.

To DAP, PAS and PKR’s surprise – the three-party pact with PSM in tow won the state governments in Kedah, Penang, Perak and Selangor apart from PAS keeping Kelantan.

And a formidable 82 seats in Parliament, denying BN its customary two-thirds parliamentary super-majority.

It took some time but the three parties formed governments in the three states although Perak fell within a year due to defections.

But the same leadership that agreed to PR and its common policy framework no longer exists in PAS. It has been replaced by a set of conservative clerics or ulama who believe that Islamist policies must take priority. Continue reading “Pakatan ends, and the lessons for a new pact”

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PAS tak boleh sendirian jika mahu tumbangkan BN, kata anak bekas pemimpin

oleh Hasbullah Awang Chik
The Malaysian Insider
17 June 2015

Pemimpin Pakatan Rakyat (PR) seharusnya kembali kepada pendekatan yang ditinggalkan bekas mursyidul am PAS Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat dalam usaha menyelamatkan gabungan pembangkang dan menumbangkan Barisan Nasional (BN), kata Nik Omar Nik Aziz.

Anak bekas menteri besar Kelantan itu berkata, arwah bapanya sering mengingatkan, segala permasalahan perlu dibawa ke meja rundingan dan pemimpin PAS seharusnya memulakan inisiatif itu.

“Cara nak selesai, lebih baik melalui meja rundingan. Dalam PR ada Majlis Presiden, di sinilah ruang terbaik.

“Saya rasa parti PAS yang mesti memulakan inisiatif langkah terbaik, bincang secara teliti, ikhlas supaya dapat dikekalkan PR, sebab itu pendekatan Tok Guru,” katanya kepada The Malaysian Insider.

Nik Omar berkata, ayahnya terlalu sayangkan ikatan sesama parti dalam PR melebihi kasih sayang kepada anaknya sendiri kerana sedar PAS tidak akan dapat mentadbir negara sendirian.

Katanya, Nik Aziz sedar landskap politik Malaysia memperlihatkan PAS perlu bersama sekutunya – PKR dan DAP – dalam usaha untuk menumbangkan kerajaan BN. Continue reading “PAS tak boleh sendirian jika mahu tumbangkan BN, kata anak bekas pemimpin”

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Tiada lagi Pakatan

– Izmil Amri
The Malaysian Insider
16 June 2015

Al-Fatihah.

Selesai dimandi, dikapan, diratap kematiannya; jenazah Pakatan Rakyat kini diusung menuju kuburan sebelum ia ditanam dalam kubur cetek separas buku lali. Tragedi ini kita saksikan bersama lebih sepuluh tahun lalu, ketika DAP meninggalkan Barisan Alternatif.

Kubur cetek Barisan Alternatif menyaksikan kebangkitan semula kebangkitan roh muafakat politik baru yang sepanjang dua pilihan raya lalu berjaya menggugat kerusi kerajaan Umno dan Barisan Nasional.

PR juga mati, dan rohnya kini bergentayangan mencari jasad baru untuk dirasuk; bagaikan watak antagonis novel kanak-kanak Harry Potter; Lord Voldermort yang meski tiada berjasad masih “hidup” dalam berbilang juzuk, sebelum tiba masanya ia bangkit semula.

PR, muafakat tiga parti politik pembangkang; tiada lain sekadar jasad, yang sepuluh hari lalu dijangkiti penyakit bawaan Muktamar PAS, kini terpaksa di-euthanasia; ekoran sakitnya yang bersangatan dan tidak terubat lagi. Continue reading “Tiada lagi Pakatan”