Whatever happens now, DAP will get the blame

KUALA LUMPUR, March 13 – The DAP has found itself cornered by its allies from PKR and PAS in the tussle to form the Perak government.

And the tenuous ties of the three parties are threatening to unravel nationwide if the impasse is not resolved quickly.

The Malaysian Insider understands from DAP sources that its leaders are worried any break-up between the three parties in Perak could lead to a similar situation in Selangor, where it is forming a state government with Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim from PKR as MB. “The difference in Perak is that we are the biggest party, but we are being dictated to.

Lim Kit Siang: Taking some heat for stay-away order

“People accuse us of being greedy. The other parties want the MB’s job and nearly all of the exco seats,” a Perak party insider told The Malaysian Insider.

Worst than that, DAP national adviser Lim Kit Siang’s statement on Wednesday night, directing all of its elected assemblyman to stay away from the swearing-in ceremony of Nizar Jamaluddin from PAS as the Perak MB, was not well received.

Despite having the overwhelming majority of seats won in the state legislature – it won 18 compared with PKR’s seven and the six from PAS – the DAP’s representatives were told they could not lead the state government because the constitution requires the MB to be a Malay-Muslim, unless the Sultan waives the requirement.

The Chinese-dominant DAP had then agreed that if its candidate for MB, Ngeh Koo Ham, was unacceptable, it would accept a PKR candidate, but definitely not Nizar from PAS.

Kit Siang’s personal blog was inundated with hundreds of messages, most of which were not complimentary, after he said DAP would not attend the swearing-in, accusing him of everything from being ungracious to greedy, and even senile as well as racist.

On Thursday morning, party leaders spent the morning in damage control mode.

Kit Siang, the Ipoh Timur MP, issued an apology to the Sultan for any disrespect caused.

His son, Lim Guan Eng, the party secretary-general and newly-elected Penang Chief Minister, directed all of DAP’s state assemblymen to attend the swearing-in ceremony.

A signed agreement had also been extracted from PAS.

Nizar would appoint eight DAP representatives to the state executive council. PAS and PKR would then get one appointment each.

Crucially, Nizar agreed that this would be a coalition and not a PAS state government, meaning no Islamic theocracy would be imposed in the state.

But at 2pm, PKR issued a statement saying it would pull out of the coalition since DAP would get the lion’s share of state exco seats.

By 4.30pm, the swearing-in at the palace in the royal town of Kuala Kangsar had been cancelled.

Representatives from the three parties – DAP, PKR and PAS – were told to get a signed declaration from every one of their elected representatives, that they supported Nizar as MB.

Adding to the drama in Kuala Kangsar was the fact that former MB Datuk Tajol Rosli of the Barisan Nasional was seen entering the palace at 3.45pm.

Was it an attempt by BN, which won 28 seats, to offer themselves as the next state government?

If that happens, the DAP is likely to be blamed.

If Nizar is sworn in, the DAP will still be blamed, particularly by the non-Malay electorate, if it fails to curb any nascent Islamisation in Perak.

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/mni/whatever-happens-now-the-dap-will-get-the-blame.html