THE above headline speaks loud and clear. The Selangor state government will still be ruling with a majority of 34 against 22 representatives. In other words, nothing will change or UBAH.

⁠The federal government will still be helmed by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim with a 2/3 majority support and going stronger as Anwar is preparing to win over the extreme or far right.

The reading is that the moderate Malays and the non-Malays do not have a choice and will still vote for a Pakatan Harapan (PH)-UMNO unity government out of fear for the “Green Wave” or PAS taking over the Federal government.

Thus, these fundamental PH voters do not have a choice but to continue voting for DAP who is the biggest block in the unity government yet the weakest lot as they are helpless and has been a major disappointment to their voters who harbour high hopes of reform or the much touted “equal playing field” with elimination of the Bumiputera quota.

But Hey! What if your votes went to the other side in a loud protest of the rhythmic shift to the far right by the Madani government? What if PH lost in the Kuala Kubu Baharu (KKB) by-election?

UBAH without change

“A defeat in the upcoming by-election would force PM Anwar and his coalition to return to the drawing board instead of riding on the notion that non-Malays and liberal Malaysians have no other option,” so opined Sunway University’s political scientist and staunch PH supporter Prof Wong Chin Huat in a Malaysiakini column.

A DAP win in the KKB by election will only mean that the government is on the right track in trying to win over the extreme right at the expense and frustration of the “Ini Kalil lah!” voters who were looking forward to reforms which are never forthcoming.

In 2018, the failure to deliver the promised reforms was blamed on Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and later on the “Sheraton Move.” This time around, there is fear mongering on PAS coming into power but quietly planning to go for another term after tasting the sweetness of being in power.

When PH had a 22-month rule in 2018, they gave the excuse that they could not realise UBAH because they were unable to complete their five-year term mandate.

Now that they are almost sure of going through their full five-year term of governance, PH is asking to be given one more term to kickstart UBAH.

Somehow, one cannot be faulted for thinking that PH seems to be taking their genuine, loyal supporters for granted by giving them a free ride to the oblivion. Promises after promises with a series of breaches or a scam is more likely.

Do we have to wait for the 16^th General Election (GE16) to show our protest? Definitely a “NO” as by then, the risk of PAS taking over will be real.

Number of disgruntled loyalists growing

But then again, PAS was not that bad when they were governing. The party was just like DAP which is not so “Chinese chauvinist” now when they are managing the country.

But they have conveniently forgotten many past promises so much so that DAP’s secretary-general Anthony Loke Siew Fook is saying he only dislikes MCA, hinting that he has always been in love with UMNO.

In conclusion, is Wong Chin Huat representing the frustrated PH loyalists? How many more Wong Chin Huats are out there in KKB?

These Wong Chin Huats in KKB will “Save Malaysia” if they are able to openly show their displeasure on PH and DAP rule by voting for the opposition, hence forcing PH to return to the drawing board to re-strategise GE16 by delivering some of their promised reforms instead of taking their supporters for granted or by making them feeling stupid at times.

A DAP loss as a sign of displeasure in protest of its “forked tongue” leaders is most welcome. This will be doing a national service by crying out loud, “Do not force us to vote PAS in GE16”.

KKB is an opportune time to exercise our democratic expression of disappointment. Except for one less seat in the Selangor stater assembly, nothing actually changes. The Selangor and Federal government remain as status quo. - April 26, 2024

Senator Datuk Seri Ti Lian Ker was a former MCA president.

The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.

https://focusmalaysia.my/so-what-if-dap-won-in-kkb-by-election/