UMNO, the grand old party of the Malays, can never again regain its past political supremacy as long it is weighed down by the misdeeds of its past, present leaders and its rather bizarre relationship with the DAP.
Both UMNO and DAP were sworn enemies for years before they came together in a political embrace after the last general elections.
Political analysts are still wondering whether such an embrace is deadly or otherwise. Even if the political leaders of both the parties have reasons of political expediency to embrace each other, UMNO grassroots members are definitely bitter.
In the recent Sungai Bakap by-election, ordinary grassroots UMNO members had no qualms to vote for the Perikatan Nasonal (PN) candidate. Such a trend is going to be the norm in future elections in the country.
UMNO members who have been socialised to hate the DAP as the source of all political evils cannot digest the political pact under the Pakatan Harapan (PH)-led government.
Leaders of both parties might rub shoulders in political meetings but the feelings and sentiments on the ground – that of the grassroots members – are different.
Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi might be UMNO’s president but his actions are a source of discontent within the party. There might be personal reasons as to why he led the way to embrace the DAP.
Leaders with shoddy dealings
The latter with more parliamentary seats than the former seemed to be the main beneficiary of the political pact.
The longer UMNO is caught in the political embrace with the DAP, the longer it is going to take the party to resonate among the ordinary Malays.
Joining the PH-led coalition might be beneficial to the top echelons of the UMNO leadership but so long as the ordinary members are concerned, ties with DAP is not something acceptable – whether political expediency or for reasons of political power.
The longer UMNO is going to continue its relationship with the DAP, more and more of its members will try to seek greener pastures in PAS and Bersatu.
The sooner UMNO calls of the relationship with the DAP, the better it is for re-invention of UMNO.
UMNO’s problems is not all about its relationship with DAP but something internal. The party cannot be re-invigorated or re-invented without the purge of some of its leaders with shoddy dealings.
Even Zahid has not been publicly cleared as to why his 47 corruption and money laundering charges were dropped without the granting of acquittal by the court.
Political power, positions and perks seem to be the motivating factors why UMNO has embraced DAP.
However, these are not going to give the party a new lease of life. UMNO is in serious trouble. The party that brought independence to the country might be face a slow but sure demise.
Severing of ties with DAP is not an issue but the question of re-invigorating the party might pose a serious problem.
How to get rid of the leaders who are well-entrenched in the party. Nothing short of a major overhaul is what the party needs.
A political overhaul would also mean breaking ties with DAP that is masquerading as a multi-ethnic political party. DAP wants to replace the MCA as the sole representative of the Chinese without calling itself as a Chinese party. – July 15, 2024
Former DAP stalwart and Penang 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
