DOES it really matter whether the DAP has a stand or not on former premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak?
Recently, DAP’s secretary-general Anthony Loke Siew Fook said the party would not compromise on the stand it has taken on Najib. DAP supports the court decision that convicted Najib in the 1MDB scandal.
It is perfectly alright for DAP to hold on to this so-called principled stand. Nobody is asking DAP to water down its position.
The question is really not whether Najib should have been convicted or not but whether he should be pardoned by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
Editor’s Note: The issue was sparked by former DAP Skudai state assemblywoman Marina Ibrahim who recently cried foul over what she alleged as double standards on Najib after a party leader supported the idea of granting him a royal pardon as well as allowing him to serve his sentence under house arrest.
Of course, there are talks and, lately, rumours that Najib stands a chance of being fully or partially pardoned, including the possibility of serving the remainder of his sentence under house arrest.
When it comes to the question of a royal pardon, DAP has no say. It is the prerogative of the Agong.
Where are DAP’s principles?
If DAP is so adamant and principled on Najib’s position, it should not forget that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was also a convicted person.
He could become the head of government because he received a royal pardon. If DAP has such a principled stand on Najib, why did it form a coalition government with Anwar as the PM?
Should DAP given its principled stand on not having any relationship with convicted individuals take the decision to end its cooperation with Anwar?
Both Anwar and Najib were convicted but Anwar was pardoned. Shouldn’t Najib also be considered for a royal pardon?
Is DAP against the exercise of the royal pardon is something over which the party has no say whatsoever?
It is perfectly alright for the party to have a firm stand on Najib but it should not talk about principles. DAP sacrificed its principles a long time ago.
If UMNO was that objectionable to the DAP, why are both parties in the same federal government? Shouldn’t DAP be thinking of quitting the government?
Whatever happened to DAP’s sacrosanct principle of “Malaysian Malaysia” – the political mantra that was often invoked in the past to defend the rights of non-Malays?
Is it still part of DAP’s constitution? Or has it been sacrificed in the pursuit of power, position and perks?
If DAP could be removed from the electoral map of Sabah in the recent elections, the question is whether the party can hold its ground in Peninsular Malaysia. – July 3, 2026
Former DAP stalwart and Penang deputy chief minister II Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy is chairman of the United Rights of Malaysian Party (Urimai) interim council.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
