Ramasamy wants Penang CM Chow Kon Yeow to be more specific who he meant by “non-Malays”

Focus Malaysia:

Ramasamy wants Penang CM Chow Kon Yeow to be more specific who he meant by “non-Malays”

By Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy

PENANG Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow must be hallucinating when he claimed that non-Malays are still loyal to the Pakatan Harapan (PH)-led ruling coalition.

DAP leaders like Chow should not term the Chinese and Indians as “non-Malays” whenever it suits them. Or distinguish them by their separate ethnic identification when it doesn’t suit them.

It is about time these leaders separate them by identifying them as “Chinese” and “Indians”. Doubtlessly, the political orientation of these ethnic communities is no longer the same.

Both were once staunch supporters of the PH-led component parties such as the DAP and PKR. However, both the Indians and Chinese went separate ways in the 2023 state elections,

In the 2023 state elections as well as the recent Kuala Kubu Baharu (KKB) and Sungai Bakap by-elections – while the Chinese remained steadfast with the PH-led coalition – Indians have begun to part their ways with the ruling coalition.

In the KKB by-election, less than 50% of Indian voters turned up to vote out of which only 35% voted for the PH-led coalition. In the Sungai Bakap polls, of those turned up to vote, about 60% voted for Perikatan Nasional (PN).

Also in the Sungai Bakap by-election, only 47% of the Chinese turned up to vote. The majority of the Chinese voters voted in favour of the PH-led candidate but not the Indians.

‘Abandon ship’

So, how could Chow claim that Chinese and Indian voters are still with the PH-led coalition. Perhaps he has not understood the voting trends in the recent by-elections.

Or maybe, he does not want to accept the sad truth that Indians have finally deserted the PH-led coalition. Thus, by calling Chinese and Indians as non-Malays, Chow can paint the false picture that they have not abandoned the ruling coalition.

Chow should stop combining both the communities as non-Malays to give the appearance that they are still with the PH-led ruling government.

The truth is that for the first time in the electoral history of the country, the Indians have abandoned the PH-led coalition to support the PN coalition in the Sungai Bakap by-election.

Chow should differentiate between the Chinese and Indians in the Sungai Bakap by-election to provide an accurate assessment of the outcome.

By combining the Chinese and Indians together as “non-Malays”, Chow is giving a false impression that the non-Malays have not deserted the ruling coalition.

Maybe this is to deflect criticism that the state government and its leaders failed to engage in an effective campaign to bolster support for the PH-led coalition.

It is a common knowledge that DAP leaders could not even establish a good rapport with the Chinese and Indian voters in the state constituency.

Chow could not even explain why the Chinese voters’ turnout was low. He dismissed such low turnout as apathy among them. – July 11, 2024

Former DAP stalwart and Penang chief minister II Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy is chairman of the United Rights of Malaysian Party (Urimai) interim council.