Speaker, Port Klang boss from DAP will push Malay voters further away, analyst says
Questions are raised about efforts to play down DAP’s dominance in the PH coalition.
(MalaysiaNow) – An analyst says DAP’s move to propose the appointment of party men as Selangor speaker and the chairman of a government-linked company will only cement the perception of the Pakatan Harapan (PH) component as the dominant party in the state administration.
Jeniri Amir said this would place DAP in a negative light and worsen its image among Malay voters.
He also warned of greater implications down the line, including the possible defeat of PH at the next general election.
“It will certainly alienate the Malays, because one of the reasons they rejected PH at the last general election was DAP’s presence in the coalition,” Jeniri, a senior fellow at the National Council of Professors, added.
“DAP is seen as the enemy of the Malays, so the situation will only get worse, resulting in a further distancing from the party which will be manifested at the next election.”
MalaysiaNow previously reported issues within the new Selangor ruling bloc over a plan by DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke to appoint former assemblyman Ean Yong Hian Wah as chairman of the Klang Port Authority, the country’s biggest port parked under his transport ministry.
Loke had also named Lau Weng San as DAP’s nominee for the speaker’s post as a form of compensation to the party for agreeing to make way for Umno in Dusun Tua.
Jeniri said the appointment of a former assemblyman as the chairman of a GLC was also controversial as it would contradict DAP’s stand against political appointments.
“If this happens, the voters will reject them,” he added, citing the recent state elections at which he said support from the Indian community had gone down by 15%.
“What more the Malay PH voters who are thinking about their rights and interests.”
