GUAN ENG: WE WON’T WORK WITH UMNO
DAP will not change its position, but will cooperate on people’s issues, says sec-gen
THERE will be no political cooperation between DAP and Umno in the 15th General Election, DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng reiterated yesterday.
Lim said DAP would not work with kleptocrat leaders in the coming polls.
He said the party’s Central Executive Committee (CEC) had not changed its position (on political cooperation between DAP and Umno).
“There will be no political cooperation between DAP and Umno in the coming polls.
“That is very clear, until and unless the party’s CEC comes out with another decision,” he said in his speech at the Penang DAP Convention here.
However, Lim said DAP would cooperate with Umno for the people’s benefit, similar to the arrangements in the Perak and Johor state governments, led by Umno, where allocations were given to opposition constituencies.
He said there could be meetings and talks with the Umno state governments on people’s issues.
“For instance, DAP is willing to work with Umno members of parliament to force the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government to convene Parliament and review harsh laws such as the imposition of RM10,000 compounds on individuals and RM50,000 on companies (who flout the Covid-19 standard operating procedure).
“This is different from political cooperation in the coming general election.
“Let those who betrayed the rakyat be judged by history.
“We need to move forward to save democracy, to save the rakyat, to save our children’s future and to save Malaysia,” he said, noting that Parliament must be restored to protect the rights of the people.
According to Lim, the people must hold on to the hope that DAP can repeat its famous victory in the 2018 general election.
“We want PH to win not just in Penang, but also Putrajaya.
“Uniting parties genuinely opposed to the PN government will not be easy.
“As a start, DAP urges all opposition parties and MPs as well as any government MPs to work towards restoring Parliament.”
The state DAP convention yesterday was attended by 1,632 delegates, or 77.6 per cent of the total number of 2,103, meeting the quorum and in full compliance with the Covid-19 standard operating procedure.
In his speech, Lim also said that the principled struggle of DAP and the courage, competency and integrity of its leaders were its strength.
“We are proud that not a single one of the 42 DAP MPs that were elected in the 2018 general elections have defected to PN.
“However, we have to recognise our weaknesses, especially in communicating our policies to the public.
“This was not a problem when we were in the opposition, but was a weakness when we were in the government, even when we were in Putrajaya.
“When people’s expectations are high, we are graded to higher standards.
“For this reason, any shortfall in delivery of government services poses a threat.
“We can overcome this threat by demonstrating that our elected representatives are in charge and connected to the aspirations of the rakyat.
“There is also an opportunity to cement the unity in diversity that exists in Penang.
“To depart from the unproductive racial and religious discourse, we must seek cooperation and collaboration with all stakeholders.
“Of course, we have to show leadership by example, by displaying our internal party unity.
“The people are watching, and after the party elections today (yesterday), we have to close ranks as one Penang team under the leadership of our chief minister,” he said.