Ronnie Liu warns of
irreparable split in DAP
The former party strongman says a divided DAP would not augur well for Pakatan Harapan’s general election prospects.
Ronnie Liu, who quit the party in 2023 after claiming it was heading in the wrong direction, compared the party’s current plight to that of its former rival, MCA, while it was part of the government before it fell into decline.
Liu suggested that DAP members should use the central executive committee elections this month to steer the party back to the right path.
The top leadership must sit down to come to a consensus or compromise to prevent a power struggle within the party.
“They need to work as one team to regain the confidence and trust of all supporters and voters. Otherwise, the cracks will deepen after the party elections and eventually weaken Pakatan Harapan’s base.”
The party veteran said the “young turks” now holding party and government posts had been groomed by seniors and veterans.
However, after becoming part of the government, they had forgotten DAP’s original struggles, and a majority of them had lost the fighting spirit.
“Outsiders who are the core supporters now see the DAP leaders as undergoing a power struggle instead of fighting to preserve the rights of Malaysians. This is exactly what MCA went through as a government party before its decline,” he told FMT.
Liu, a two-term Selangor assemblyman and five-term elected CEC member, said the 4,000 delegates must vote in leaders who need to change the party’s approach as it is now in government at federal and state levels.
He said the change should not be done at the expense of the party’s fundamental struggle but instead should be a balanced approach to ensure its supporters do not lose faith in DAP.
Liu, a longtime loyalist of DAP chairman Lim Guan Eng, said the delegates must avoid electing “arrogant individuals who may damage the party’s image”.
He said: “If a leader is arrogant and speaks or acts disrespectfully, they risk alienating voters and providing political opponents with opportunities to attack the party.”
He said DAP is no longer a party dominated by a single ethnic group and is actively expanding its voter base, particularly among Malay voters, and an arrogant leader may struggle to gain broader acceptance.
Liu said DAP was suffering a trust deficit and a further split would have serious implications on PH at the next general election. DAP must be strong so that it can check on the transgressions of Umno, PAS and Bersatu.
Last Sunday, DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook played down talk of camps in the party, saying the spread of such claims ahead of the party elections next month was normal.
Analysts previously said there appeared to be two factions in the central executive committee elections, with one led by Loke himself, and the other by Lim. There were also claims of a move within the party to oust Lim from the CEC.
Speculation surrounding the elections intensified after DAP organising secretary Steven Sim was heckled by an aide to Lim at a dinner in Penang. The aide later apologised for his actions against Sim, who is also the newly elected Penang DAP chief.
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