PENANG deputy chief minister II Dr P. Ramasamy provided an interesting food for thought earlier when he mulled over the possibility of DAP or Pakatan Harapan (Pakatan) having a working relationship with UMNO. 

The Perai assemblyperson however stressed that the possibility cannot be established on the basis of certain specious public utterances in the recent past. 

At an official level, he said, there is no such thing as DAP wanting to embrace UMNO – or vice versa – as there is too much history of bad blood between both political parties. 

“In fact, the politics of DAP to create a just and united Malaysian society is premised on the notion of defiance and opposition to UMNO’s brand of politics that is exclusively concerned with race to the detriment of others,” he noted. 

As such, no right-thinking progressive party would want to condone UMNO’s “nefarious racism” by forming an alliance – even if it’s a temporary electoral alliance. 

When discussing political marriages of convenience, one needs to look no further than DAP and Pakatan, both of whom paid a heavy political price by bringing former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad to become the prime minister under the short-lived Pakatan government. 

“Pakatan as a whole lost support due to this marriage of convenience with Mahathir,” Ramasamy pointed out. 

“Politics in Pakatan might never be the same after this parasitic relationship. The after-effects have cost the coalition in terms of political support, which is something that might not be easily regained.” 

On the idea of exploring the possibilities of forming electoral pacts with other political parties outside Pakatan’s framework, Ramasamy reckoned that such a thinking does not mean that the party has given up on its principles for short-term electoral gains. 

Far from it, he insisted, adding that thinking out of the box is what makes politics exciting and challenging, and this is necessary at times to rejuvenate the dynamism in political thinking. 

Having said that, it is not possible to rule out any forms of political cooperation between Pakatan component parties and others outside of its framework. 

After all, to paraphrase German diplomat Otto von Bismarck, politics is indeed the art of the possible. 

“However, one thing must be upheld at all times: Pakatan must stick to its principles of creating a united, just and integrated Malaysia where there will be a level playing field for all citizens immaterial of their racial or religious origins,” Ramasamy emphasised. 

“Cooperation or even electoral pacts with those outside of Pakatan must be approached on the basis of this principled understanding because without a definable base, cooperation might simply be interpreted as something for short-term gains and nothing more.” 

More importantly, there is no point of having an electoral pact with race-driven parties if the ultimate objective of the Pakatan coalition cannot be met. 

Thus, electoral pacts should not be predicated on the basis of earning a quick electoral victory and in this context, there is no point in having an electoral pact with race-driven parties if the ultimate objective of the PH coalition cannot be met. 

“The mistake made by bringing in Bersatu headed by Mahathir was an extremely costly error on Pakatan’s end. It hardly took 22 months for Pakatan to be brought down by the treachery of its one-time ‘friends’,” Ramasamy said. 

“The mere floating of the idea or even the remote possibility of working with UMNO cannot be interpreted to say that DAP is about to betray its long-standing principles.” 

In fact, Ramasamy mentioned there are endless possibilities for political parties to combine and interact without losing sight of the country’s wellbeing.  

“[However] I don’t see any political vision emanating from the present government or the supposedly BN government-in-waiting,” he noted. 

“Fortunately, the multi-billion-ringgit scandal associated with the littoral combat ships (LCS) might not endear UMNO or even Barisan Nasional (BN) to the rakyat. 

“If only Pakatan can get its act together to slam UMNO on this matter.” 

While there is nothing wrong with political parties on both sides of the divide considering a cooperation for the larger interest of the country, here’s a word of caution from Ramasamy: 

“For Pakatan component parties, the idea of cooperation – or even an electoral pact – must be broached from a principled angle.” – Aug 17, 2022