The Malays in DAP after Tunku Aziz

DAP's Malay twin towers: Aspan and Sak flank Kit Siang

... and the RM50k-a-month year offer. Before embarking on the 4-day, 1000km Kembara Mahkota Johor 2012 last Sunday, I did a positng on Tunku Aziz Ibrahim. He was still a DAP member then, although an unhappy one. When I re-entered the Malaysian political blogosphere this morning, Tunku Aziz has quit the party. The man they called "the Towering Malay" when he joined the DAP 4 years ago was effectively forced to quit for daring to voice his "personal views" on Bersih 3.0, a desperate Pakatan Rakyat's political lifeline.

Twin Towers. There aren't many notable Malays in the DAP to start with. You have, perhaps, Aspan Alias and Dato's Sabri aka Sakmongkol who joined the party quite recently, and there is Khir Johari's son, Zairil. 

The collapse of the so-called Towering Malay is, of course, an opportunity for Aspan and Sakmongkol to get an early promotion in the DAP. But neither is of Tunku Aziz's class; in fact, both are seen no more than just two more disgruntled ex-UMNO men. Most DAP members don't trust either of them and in light of the damage Tunku Aziz has done to their party, I reckon they'd truth the two Malays even less now.

At the heart of the matter is DAP's own lost credibility. As Tay Tian Yan the deputy editor-in-chief of Sin Chew puts it bluntly, the departure of Tunku Aziz signifies the banishment of DAP's ideals.

Tunku joined DAP all because of an aspiration, thinking his move could propel the nation's democracy and progress ... When this party begins to lose its ideals to favouritism and utilitarianism, its culture begins to recede.

Tay blames the "populism and fanatism that are beginning to take shape within (the DAP".

These people are eager to drift with popular sentiments, and lose the rational thinking and democratic traits the party enshrines.  

As if that is not enough, DAP has found itself infiltrated by a bunch of mundane folks lacking in both democratic qualities and political ideologies. 

Tay could be referring to Zairil, or to Lim Guan Eng himself ...

As these people ascend the leadership ladder, they begin to create issues and foes while engaging themselves in all sorts of seditious and provocative tricks, causing the moderate thinking to feel disgruntled and disenchanted.

Under the spell of populism and fanaticism, the party surrenders its capacity to think and debate logically, rendering it less tolerant to criticisms.

Read Tay's article in the Sin Chew, Democratic Ideals Banished, h e r e.

The sensational RM50,000 offer by the party to Tunku Aziz has worsened matters. For years, the DAP has been at the forefront in accusing parties linked to the Barisan Nasional of practising money politics. The RM50k offer made to Tunku Aziz is money politcs, Dr Chandra Muzaffar, who was a deputy president of PKR, says.

"I think the matter should be brought to MACC. This is an attempt to buy a person to stay in the party."

Go read The MOLE's RM50,000 is money politics. 

Zairil Khir Johari has since "regretted" the consequences of the offer here.

IMHO, there is no future for the Malays in DAP. The DAP is not a place for Malays who think that their views can be accepted. And the DAP will not have a future if tries to be what it can't be. It is a Chinese-based party and should not pretend that it is not.