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Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Why PAS is lukewarm towards local elections

In a previous post, a visitor asked: “Do you think Tan Keng Liang's move to continue to pressure Pakatan Rakyat to keep their promise on local council elections is good or bad?”
Then he thought better of it, since we all know Tan Keng Liang is Kedah Gerakan, and qualified his question: 


“Assume Tan Keng Liang is not from Gerakan. Do you think his move to continue to pressure Pakatan Rakyat to keep their promise on local council elections is good or bad?” wakakaka.


But my response is, is there really any need to pressure Pakatan? After all, Lim Guan Eng has been the one to start the ball rolling, and Khalid Ibrahim saw fit to follow, so really, what need is there to pressure them?

The very same people who want (or pretend) to 'pressure' Lim GE are the very people who had claimed Lim was only grandstanding when he proposed local council elections - well, that's politics for you.

In fact it's UMNO and its apparatus the EC which need pressuring. If Tan is so keen, that’s whom he should be pressuring, if he has the gonads, wakakaka.

OK, admittedly the 3rd component of the Pakatan, PAS, has been lukewarm, but then PAS has never committed itself whole heartedly to local elections. Only the DAP and PKR were the ones.

So Penang and Selangor, namely the DAP and PKR led state governments can go ahead with council elections without Kedah or Kelantan, that is, if PM Najib supports that. But haven't we been told that PM Najib is not in favour - he's scared of the BN being shown the boot. The demoralising effect would be tsnunami-c (again), to say the least.

By the way, don’t expect the Perak MB to make a similar declaration (i.e. wanting local elections), unless of course Tan Keng Liang has the balls to urge/advise/pressure Zambry wakakaka.

Back to PAS – I can see why PAS is not so keen. Let me wander around (again wakakaka) before I explain.

In 1961, the ruling party which formed the Penang State government was Perikatan (predecessor of the BN) which was then made up of only 3 parties, UMNO, MCA and MIC. Wong Pow Nee (MCA) was the CM.

Yet when local elections were held in 1961 for the City Council of Georgetown, Penang, it was not the Perikatan who won. The Socialist Front (known to Penangites as goo t’au tongparti kepala lembu) won 14 of the 15 seats, in any language a humongous landslide.

Why?

Because many sectors of Georgetown was the socialist heartland, places like Weld Quay, Beach Street, the Magazine Road - Bricklin Road area and the Campbell Road – Prangin area, Carnarvon Street, etc. It was Karn-neen-nare Land wakakaka. The MCA which depended on the middle class and above had a snowflake chance in hell of winning.

The 1st mayor was, according to my family, a Socialist Front man named DS Ramanathan, a Penang teacher of Sri Lanka origin. He was subsequently succeeded by another Labour man, Ooi Thiam Siew, who was quite urbane and spoke very eruditely in both English and Chinese (Hokkien, maybe even Mandarin) even though his cohorts were from the socialist heartland.

14 out of 15 seats won by the Socialis Front! This is what PAS fears because local elections by its urban nature can be and will probably be in the general case (except for places like KB) dominated by the Chinese pollies. Even in Kedah, places like Alor Setar and Sungai Petani could well see the town councils manned by mainly Chinese.

PAS doesn’t want this to come about because (a) it wants to appoint its own people, (b) it is petrified of UMNO making hay out of Chinese sunshine at PAS’ gloomy expense and (c) it is in the final analysis a Malay party inasmuch as it claims to be an Islamic party.

Just look at people like Hassan Ali of Selangor and even Hadi Awang, who were both pro Malay-unity in the immediate aftermath March 2008, though Pak Hadi Awang has lately embraced, perhaps grudgingly, more of Pakatan's multi-ethnic policies because he has been shown and accepted the ‘bigger picture’ [of PAS riding on Pakatan’s back to a true Islamic State].

That has been why PAS has been lukewarm towards local council elections. Equally it explains why Najib doesn’t even want to think about it, unless Tan Keng Liang can 'pressure' him wakakaka (sorry lah, can't help it) as he (Najib that is) realizes that he cannot depend on the MCA, what more when the man who, together with his brother, lost the Chinese votes for the BN (save in Johore) is now coming back in a hope to head his party again wakakaka.

Gerakan people like Tan Keng Liang are desperate, and really can you blame them when their party has been decimated and their party president is sadly and humiliatingly reduced to virtually carrying a briefcase for Idris Jala wakakaka (sorry for my wakakaka-ing, can’t help it lah).

Hence they pretend to ‘pressure’ Pakatan to proceed on with local council elections for 2 reasons, (a) to show how 'brave' they are in making Pakatan live up to its election promise (knowing full well that Najib is the real power and thus the culprit in denying such elections) and (b) just in case Najib does allow local elections, they can have a second stab at a meaningful political role as a people’s representative, even if only at the level of local governments. Better than zero role, I suppose wakakaka!

I don’t think the MCA will have a chance in both Penang but quite frankly Gerakan just may as there is still a soft spot amongst some Penangites for a once-upon-a-time Gerakan.


18 comments:

  1. I thought that it was Pakatan Rakyat who say they support local council election.
    It was not just PKR or DAP.
    If PAS now want to say they never agree to local council election, why they never say it last time?
    They just kept quite eh???
    People voted them (especially chinese like me) thought PAS committed to Pakatan's goal, including promise for democracy!
    Disappointment!!!

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  2. Ktemoc,
    I think many people even from NGO like BERSIH, Aliran had been asking Pakatan Rakyat to fulfil their promise for local council elections. That means all pakatan states including Kelantan and Kedah. There should not be exception for PAS.
    http://bersih.org/?p=2939

    I am of those people who are not allign to any political party and just hope Pakatan will keep their promise (and will tell PAS to hold the promise by Pakatan since they are also part of Pakatan).

    PAS is actually damaging the image of Pakatan when they say they are not interested in the local council elections. Where is the unity in Pakatan?
    There is high hopes of Pakatan able to make reforms. There is no exception for PAS.

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  3. I have nothing against Gerakan if they want to support the local council elections. THeir leaders like Tan Keng Liang should be supported if want to ask for local council elections.

    I only support the party or leaders who fight for democracy and can benefit the people. Who cares whether from Pakatan or BN?

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  4. I hope Tan Keng Liang will ask Zambry for local elections in Perak, as well as the other MBs, namely of NS, Malacca, Johor, Pahang for local elections.

    Only and only then will I support him, otherwise he's just pandai kacau-ing Pakatan people and not really for democracy in local council elections.

    ReplyDelete
  5. KTemoc,
    You think Tan Keng Liang would dare to ask Zambry to hold loca government election. Guess what Zambry would say?
    Niabeh lu ng chai see! Ptui! Plus, Tan Keng Liang's poster would be burnt.
    I think some clowns hero-worship this pathetic little rat. Come on if Tan Keng Liang does not & will not allow commenting, what makes one think that he believes in true democracy.
    Tan Keng Liang gives himself a tight slap with his articles.

    Ktemoc,
    Same goes to Wee Wee Boy. Oh by the way, some Gerakan clowns, once upon a time, CM contenders such as Chang Yeow & Hock Nan insinuating on LGE's insistence of chinese Penang state secretary to be removed.
    Just ask Tan Keng Liang.....What's he gonna say about this? Hey I wanna say, that Tan Keng Liang doesn't allow comment box to be opened. What a PricK!

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  6. There is sure some good reason why there is a lot of people supporting Tan Keng Liang.
    Like what ktemoc said, just imagine Tan Keng Liang is not from gerakan.
    We focus on the issue which he brings up. We see whether the issue is good for people or not.

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  7. Ktemoc, I just found this at malaysiakini about Tan Keng Liang saying PR's call on local polls mere rhetoric.
    http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/126613

    Gerakan: PR's local polls plan 'mere rhetoric'Mar 15, 10 6:54pmKedah Gerakan Youth chief Tan Keng Liang has urged Pakatan Rakyat to arrive at a uniform agreement on local government elections in all its states.

    In a response to an article published in the New Straits Times today, headlined 'Kedah says no to local polls', Tan asked Pakatan to clarify if it wants local government elections in all its four states.

    “There is no point for Pakatan Rakyat to continue talking about local government elections if it is not even sincere in implementing this in all (its) states,” Tan said in the statement.

    He noted that a mere letter to the Election Commission would not absolve Pakatan from fulfilling its pledge to implement local government elections.

    The NST report had quoted Kedah Menteri Besar Azizan Razak as saying that the state would not reintroduce local government elections as the current practice of having political appointees as councillors serves the fine.

    He claimed that it is easier to get things done the traditional way, as the councillors are “their own people”.

    PAS Youth chief Nasruddin Hassan echoed the view in a Harakah Daily report headlined 'Local government elections are not suitable at this time'.

    In the past week, Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng (left) and Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim (right) have confirmed their commitment to restore local government elections.

    On March 9, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak shot down the plan, saying it is unnecessary to hold local government elections as this would cause too much politicking.

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  8. I can see his commitment on this issue. Only unfortunate thing is he is from Gerakan.
    Imagine if he is from an NGO...you sure able to view his comment differently.

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  9. Tan Keng Liang should demand that umno install him as PM in Najib's place. Then only can I respect him for having testicles

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  10. quite disappointing to see a rogue party like PAS in Pakatan Rakyat. PAS is like UMNO in Barisan. What a shame!

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  11. What! Install Tan Keng Liang as PM. Come on lah. The very few fellas I respected is Tan Chee Koon & his son Tan Tee Kwang. By the way, Tee Kwang is in PKR. I would even propose Tee Kwang to replace our Wee Wee boy in the next GE.

    Anyway, Tan Keng Liang seem to get too much publicity. Hence, lets talk less on Tan boy

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  12. loose74,
    there must some reason why people are talking about tan keng liang nowadays.
    Just forget about his party and see at the issues he helping people.

    ReplyDelete
  13. ktemoc,
    anothing god damn anoying statement from Tan Keng liang of gerakan in malaysiakini. This bugger is a pest.
    http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/126886
    Please help to rebut this person's annoying statement.


    Gerakan to Lim: Get house in order before meeting PM
    Mar 18, 10 1:55pm
    Kedah Gerakan Youth chief Tan Keng Liang has dismissed Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng's attempt to meet Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak over the local elections issue as pre-mature.

    He advised Lim to first meet with his superior, PR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim over their coalition's stand on local government elections before meeting the prime minister.

    Tan said in a statement today that a pre-mature meeting with the prime minister would be construed as a politically motivated attempt to absolve PR from fulfilling their pledge to hold such polls in their states.

    He was referring to a recent announcement where PAS said that it was not interested in implementing local government elections in Kedah.

    While lauding Lim's move to implement local elections in Penang, Tan has been on the offensive over PR's failure to achieve a unified stand on the issue.

    "Lim should be reminded that the pledge to hold local government elections was made by the PR and not just the DAP," said the statement.

    On March 6, Lim said that the Penang government had submitted a to the Election Commission asking it to conduct local elections for its two municipalities.

    A day later the Selangor government announced that it would follow suit, however their PAS counterparts were less than enthusiastic about the whole idea.

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  14. what is wrong with asking Pakatan people to keep their promise with local council elections?

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  15. ok...we now can see an upcoming politician from gerakan who successfully irritate a lot of pakatan lovers.

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  16. but good to have Tan Keng Liang as a check and balance on pakatan rakyat's promise

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  17. more of check (obstruct) than balance, like demanding Lim GE not see Najib (when the PM is the person disapproving local elections), which means Tan Keng Liang is echoing his UMNO Lord & Master, by being against local elections wakakaka

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  18. PAS should leave Pakatan rakyat now or just follow the common policy of PR. PR will be finish if PAS continue with their own f***ing policy.

    ReplyDelete