‘Do DAP members really support working with Dr M?’
Former party leader asks DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng whether he has consulted the members or held a vote on the matter.
PETALING JAYA: A former DAP leader has cast doubt on DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng’s claim that members back the party’s collaboration with former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who is now Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) chairman.
“Has Lim collected any data on whether DAP members support the idea of joining forces with Mahathir?
“Has he held a vote within the party?” asked Shamsher Singh Thind.
Yesterday, the outspoken Shamsher, who had previously criticised the party for collaborating with Mahathir, quit citing loss of confidence in DAP leaders.
Subsequently, Lim said, unlike Shamsher, other party members were happy to support the alliance with the former Umno president.
Shamsher, however, questioned whether the issue of working with Mahathir was discussed by the party’s central executive committee (CEC).
“Many delegates came up to me to say they agreed with me. I said, if you think I am right, then please speak up.”
Shamsher said following his resignation, many people on Facebook had accused him of not being able to see the bigger picture.
“Some people even say that I have been fed ‘dedak’ (euphemism for bribe) by Barisan Nasional. But these people have failed to see my point.
“I don’t believe Mahathir is genuine in wanting to help DAP. He makes statements to suit his needs. What he says now contradicts the things he said when he was in power.
“So was he speaking the truth then? Or is he speaking the truth now? How do we know?”
He pointed out that Mahathir had in his time as prime minster arrested opposition leaders en masse using the Internal Security Act (ISA) and also attacked the judiciary.
“How can people forget Ops Lalang or the damage Mahathir has done to our judiciary?”
He added it was a shame party veterans had to witness Mahathir receiving VIP treatment at yesterday’s DAP national conference even though he had treated DAP leaders cruelly and had never apologised for it.
Shamsher, who was from DAP’s Chai Leng Park branch, also said Mahathir and his PPBM could break up the opposition.
He said this was because the issue of who would become prime minister should the opposition win had yet to be discussed.
“If BN loses and someone from PKR is made PM, can PPBM accept that? If they cannot, their representatives may threaten to jump ship and cause the opposition coalition to collapse.
“Marriages of convenience just cannot work. Look at what happened with PAS.
“I quit because I do not want to be part of a party without principles,” Shamser said, adding that he would not be joining another political party for now.
The law lecturer said he would now focus on educating the public on the importance of voting for the individual candidate instead of the party.
“Voters must hold their elected representative accountable. They must assess their MPs or assemblymen based on experience, qualifications and track record because as voters, they will deal with their elected representative and not the party.”
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He said he would be doing this through Facebook and perhaps even set up an NGO in the future.