Is DAP bowing to Malay interests?
The DAP has rectified its party election results and a Malay candidate has been elected to the powerful central executive committee.
Leven Woon, FMT
The DAP has rectified its party election results of Dec 15 and suspicion is rife that the party is pandering to Malay interests.
In the election, not one of the eight Malay candidates were voted into the central executive committee (CEC).
But last night the party announced it rectified the results and Zairil Khir Johari, a protégé of secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, secured the number 20 spot.
This puts Zairil in the powerful 20-seat CEC and being the sole Malay candidate who was elected to the top post.
In the recount, Zairil secured a place in CEC by garnering 803 votes. On the other hand, DAP grassroots member Vincent Wu, who initially shared the fifth spot with Anthony Loke at 1,202 votes, actually garnered 669 votes and is in 26th position.
Deputy president Tan Kok Wai secured the sixth spot following the changes.
Several quarters are asking why the delay in the recount as the party had known the error a day after the party polls on Dec 15.
The party election returning officer, Pooi Weng Keong, said the error was caused by technical glitches when transferring the tabulated results using Microsoft Excels.
He said he had reported the mistake to DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng a day after the party polls, but the latter instructed that the correct results be made public after an internal audit and verified by external auditors.
However, former Selangor DAP leader Tan Tuan Tat believed that the timing of such an announcement might be the party’s ploy to divert public attention from an alleged land scandal involving Perak DAP leader Ngeh Koo Ham.
Poor management skill
The allegations first surfaced during Perak State Legislative Assembly sitting on Dec 21 in which Ngeh was accused of receiving more than 4,000 acres of a land from PAS-led Kelantan government as an inducement to appoint PAS assemblyman Nizar Jamaluddin as menteri besar after the 2008 general election.
“Don’t forget after the central executive committee election, only the issue of Ngeh Koo Ham cropped up.
“The issue has been punishing, so I wouldn’t be surprised if this was done to divert attention,” he said.
He also said the party should have conducted fresh elections in the wake of such major error.
“It’s definitely a big no-no for them to make such a mistake for a major event like party elections. It proves that their management skill is not up to par yet,” he said.
The party’s poll results was criticised by various quarters as its members failed to elect any of the eight Malay candidates to the CEC, despite the party’s claims that it is a multiracial party.
Meanwhile, Klang DAP secretary Lee Fu Haw asked why the party did not immediately inform about the error to the delegates who were still at the party convention.
“You could have announced it first and gone for the auditing later. The delay is puzzling to many of us ,” he said.
He, however, said he didn’t think the rectifications were cooked up.
