PH in S’wak to use PKR or DAP logo for GE14 after meeting next week

KUCHING: Parti Amanah Negara and Democratic Action Party ( DAP) branches in Sarawak will only know by next week after a meeting of Sarawak Pakatan Harapan ( PH) on whether they will be using a PKR or DAP logo as a common symbol for the upcoming general election.

According to state Amanah chief Fizuan Zaidi, the state PH would be calling for a meeting next week to decide on the logo issue.

When contacted yesterday, state DAP chairman Chong Chieng Jen said: “Sarawak DAP to decide. That’s the autonomy we have”.

However, DAP headquarters in Peninsular Malaysia has decided that their candidates there would be using PKR (Parti Keadilan Rakyat) logo as the Pakatan Harapan common symbol, ‘ because PH is still not registered as a political party’.

DAP secretary- general Lim Guan Eng told the press yesterday that election candidates of the PH coalition would be using PKR logo in the forthcoming general election in Peninsular Malaysia.

This mean that the DAP logo bearing the rocket will not be used for the first time since 1969 in Peninsular Malaysia.

Lim said the DAP, was however, letting the DAP in Sarawak decide for themselves which logo they want to use, a Malaysiakini news portal reported yesterday.

“For the first time since 1969, no ‘rocket’ in the Peninsular. The rocket is one of the most recognisable political logos in Malaysia. It has made an appearance in every general election since 1969,” Malaysiakini reported.

Lim was quoted as saying that DAP agreed to use a common logo for the 14th national polls, but the decision would not affect Sarawak and Sabah DAP ‘due to their autonomy’.

Lim, the Penang Chief Minister conceded that the move might have an impact on its long-time supporters.

“We cannot deny the impact, but it is important for us not only to have one-to- one fights with BN, but also to have one logo against BN since they have undemocratically and unjustly refused to register PH – both the party and the logo. We have no choice,” he said.

Lim said this was a difficult decision and would be the first time DAP is contesting in an election without using its own logo.