AFTER the humiliating defeat in the Johor polls, Pakatan Harapan (PH) must adopt a flexible approach, including in negotiation strategies with other opposition parties and coalitions at both state and federal levels, Ong Kian Ming said today.

The DAP lawmaker said that PH must also be flexible in its campaign strategies and in its timeline for the general election.

“In light of the vote splitting among the various opposition parties and coalitions, which allowed Barisan Nasional (BN) to win a disproportionate percentage of seats in Malacca and Johor, there is obviously a need for the opposition parties to sit down and discuss various pacts and formulations for GE15,” he said.

Ong said that there was little point in “killing each other” on the electoral battlefield to prove who was the strongest opposition party only to end up making BN stronger than it actually is. 

However, the Bangi MP admitted that it would not be easy to get opposition parties to sit down and talk to one another.

“(This is) because of the mutual distrust and dislike which currently exists, whether it is  party to party (PAS v DAP or Bersatu) or person to person (Dr Mahathir v Anwar, Azmin’s faction in Bersatu v the PKR leadership, Shafie Apdal v Anwar, Hadi v Guan Eng).

“This is why a flexible approach has to be adopted by PH, as the largest opposition block. Discussions may take place on an informal basis on some form of electoral pact, perhaps starting at the state level to avoid three-cornered fights in seats with opposition incumbents,” the DAP lawmaker explained.

Citing an example to support his argument, Ong said PH may promise not to field any candidates in the Pagoh and Mersing parliamentary seats (both Bersatu seats) and Perikatan Nasional (PN) in return agree not to field candidates in Johor Baru, Pulai and Iskandar Puteri, which are all PH seats.

BN won 40 out of the 56 seats in Johor, PH – with only DAP and Amanah – won 11, while PKR, which used its own logo, won one.

PN won three seats, with the former prime minister calling the pact “underdogs”. Youth-based party Muda, a PH ally, won one seat. 

None of the other new parties, including Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s Pejuang and PKR splinter Parti Bangsa Malaysia, won any seats. All their candidates lost their deposits. 

Touching on Pejuang and Warisan, Ong said it may make sense for Pejuang to put its effort in Kedah and some of the other northern/eastern states where it has better grassroots support. 

“As for Warisan, they may want to rethink its strategy of contesting in Peninsular Malaysia and put its focus back on Sabah.

“Some multi-cornered fights will probably be inevitable, but the basic idea here is to minimise the number of contests with opposition MPs as incumbents, whether they are from PN or PH.

“The same flexible approach should be taken in the approach towards GE15 but on a much larger stage involving much more complicated arrangements at the state and federal levels,” he opined.

Multiple concrete plans

Ong acknowledges that his approach may not sit well with some segments of PH supporters but he said post-GE14 politics, each party and coalition must be open to explore different options and configurations. 

“In a political and economic environment that is as complex as what the country and the world is facing today, we as political leaders must do the hard work of thinking and acting strategically and then explain our actions to our supporters and to the larger public.

“We must avoid resorting to knee-jerk reactions and responding to immediate populist sentiment that may go against longer-term interests of the opposition and also the country as a whole.

“Being flexible in our approach does not mean we do not have any concrete plans. On the contrary, it means that we have to have multiple concrete plans for different scenarios that may take place.”

He said PH should take note of its own criticism and realise that carrying out the same strategies as before would leave it being guilty of taking the same path of repeating the same moves and expecting different electoral outcomes. – March 14, 2022.