The 5 stages of grief… getting over Fong Po Kuan
By TheSilo
Fong Po Kuan decided to break up with us. We sent two of our buddies (LKS and LGE) to go and talk to her to try to get her to change her mind, and it looks as though they did try their best. But she remains firm… she thinks we should just be friends.
When we first heard the news, many of us were in denial. I can imagine hardcore DAP uncles across the country running repeatedly to their PCs to check for updates, desperately hoping to see that it was a miscommunication or something like that, then going back to the living room and bemoaning the situation to their wives and children who really have better things to do, but they lend an ear anyway.
Next came the rage against the machine various parties. Anger had been directed at DAP Perak for being a mess (3-way in Sg. Siput, now this?), LKS/LGE for not stabilizing the situation, and even at FPK herself for dropping this bombshell so close to the day.
Her repeated reassurances that her commitment to DAP remains came as a consolation prize readily accepted by those bargaining their way out of anger, so they can justify continued support for the party’s various campaigns.
But then the reality of the timing of this wipes out whatever consolation we may have gotten out of her continued commitment to the party. If she felt the relationship didn’t have a good future together that’s fine, it’s just that breaking up with us now, so close to the big game… leaves us with depressed feelings about the game itself.
But in truth, the Malaysian electorate is not that emotional, and although FPK was the darling of the nation (in particular the younger lot) her impact on the election beyond Batu Gajah would not be tremendous. The young lot are pretty much voting opposition anyway. She’s made her choice; the timing could have been better obviously, but who knows what is in her heart… for her to hold on until now, she must have *really* wanted to stay on, but in the end a Batu Gajah seat defense simply did not materialize, for reasons that I doubt we will know of until at least March 9th 2008.
But the thing that we really need to accept is the messy internal politicking prevalent in the DAP. The DAP’s weakness is not an ideological one or a lack of ability to generate solid world-class policies, and I even suspect that Malay voters (urban in particular) are less antagonistic towards DAP now (a theory that we would be able to test with the election outcome this year, based on the election results from different polling areas)… the problems are all to do with form rather than substance. Dr Hsu has even gone so far as to suggest that had this problem not been so rampant within the party, Malaysia would be a two-party system by now.
Be that as it may, the choice for voters is still clear. If this election was one to select a government, then there would be legitimate reason to view the DAP with scorn because it would be prudent to question if it can provide a stable government. But for now, that’s not an option on the table… in my opinion even breaking 2/3rds majority is not on the table… what is on the table is crossing the psychological 45% popular vote threshold, which is less than the popular vote secured by the opposition in 1969, but more than in 1999. The effect of that will be a genuine change in national policies and direction, and even if that doesn’t get the message through, it will provide the opposition with much needed cash (MPs and ADUNs give a piece of their income to their parties to organize research groups, newspapers, common campaign materials etc) to develop into a genuine alternative. This would require significant support for DAP, PKR, and PAS.
As for the DAP in particular, a big win in my mind would be if one of it’s Malay candidates gets into Parliament.
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