Constituency Service
It is now over two years since our election as Member of Parliament or/ and State Assemblyman.
One of the hardest-hitting points we made during the 1969 general elections campaign was that the previous Alliance MPs/SAs were never really interested in the welfare and problems of the electorate, but were only making use of their elected positions to make money and feather their own nests.
We promised the country that the DAP, given a chance, will show the people the difference between DAP MPs/SAs and Alliance MPs/SAs: that the Alliance is a party of capitalists, feudalists and opportunists who are in politics because of the money, name, privilege and position that can be derived; while the DAP is a party of Malaysians who are in politics to serve the people.
The DAP will be discredited as a serious and responsible political party if our MPs/SAs do not honour their election pledge to serve the people.
Furthermore, the people judge the party by the performance of their elected representatives.
The people know that we do not hold the reins of power and cannot meet every need and request that they may make. If we try to help them, however, they will appreciate that we have done our duty and obligation to them.
I am very concerned about the standard of constituency service of MPs and SAs throughout the country.
There are still MPs/SAs who do not visit their constituencies, do not have a regular office where their constituents can go to in time of need, who do not carry out party duties in their constituencies and who do not develop closer contacts with party members.
The Central Executive Committee takes a serious view of MPs/SAs who fail in their constituency services, and will take drastic action against those who continue to ignore their constituency responsibilities.
In the higher interests of the party’s future, this dereliction of duties by MPs/SAs in their constituencies must stop forthwith.
Beginning in August, I shall tour all DAP State Parliamentary constituencies not only to see the standard of constituency service of every DAP MP/SA, but also to receive public complaints, if any, in connection with performance of constituency duties. I shall be making a public statement before my constituency tour, so that the public will know the place and time to meet me if they have any representation or complaint to make about their MP/SA.
Let us all rededicate ourselves to our common objective, and as elected leaders of the nation, set an example which the party, the country and the entire democratic socialist movement can be proud.