MELAKA state election is a good wake up call for Pakatan Harapan to do some soul searching and consider forming new alliances, said Bangi MP Ong Kian Ming.
“Presenting a configuration of new alliances by including Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (MUDA) to attract younger voters could be a start.
“We also need younger volunteers and members to be part of our machinery on the ground and in social media as opposed to just relying on the top leaders of the individual component parties,” he said, in a statement.
In the Melaka state polls, Barisan Nasional won a supermajority by garnering 21 out of the 28 seats contested.
Overall, Pakatan only managed to clinch five seats, with for being won by the DAP and the rest by Amanah.
Ong said while there was still time before the next general election, Pakatan needs to come up with a compelling narrative soon as the coalition cannot rely on the people’s anger over Perikatan Nasional alone to win votes.
While many are angry at former premier Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and Perikatan, the former deputy minister opined that it may have subsided to some extent after Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob became the prime minister.
“And we must put aside personal agendas so that we can push forward a more compelling strategy, with a larger political narrative put in place,” he stressed.
No more “frogs” please
On related matters, Ong admitted that the decision to work with “political frogs” may have backfired as it did not yield any dividends to the coalition.
“Former UMNO chief minister (Datuk Seri Idris Haron) only managed to win only 27% of the vote in the Asahan seat.
“Probably, the decision also discouraged some of our own supporters from coming out to vote or even to switch their votes,” he lamented.
Idris, who contested under the PKR ticket for the Asahan seat lost to Barisan Nasional’s Datuk Fairul Nizam while Datuk Nor Azman Hassan, who contested for the Pantai Kundor seat under Parti Amanah Negara ticket got defeated in a three-cornered fight.
On that note, Ong said that Pakatan also needed to strengthen its game plan in terms of party machinery especially when it comes to semi-urban and rural seats.
The former deputy minister added that Pakatan cannot depend on machinery from other states to cover weaknesses in the local chapter during polls.
“And we need to pay attention to coming up with a compelling narrative, which unfortunately was lacking in Melaka,” he remarked. – Nov 23, 2021.
Photo credit: The Star
