Speech by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Tanjong, Lim Kit Siang, at the inaugural meeting of the DAP National Voters Registration Campaign Committee held at DAP PJ Hqrs on Sunday, 12th June 1994
DAP directs all branches to use the 21-day snap voters registration exercise in July as a trial run for next general elections
The Election Commission is conducting a 21-day snap voters’ registration exercise from July 11 to July 31.
If the general elections are held this year, any time from August to October, then voters who are registered next month would not be eligible to cast their vote. Voters who register next month would only be eligible to vote if general elections are held early next year.
What then does the Election Commission’s snap 21-day voters’ registration exercise signify? Does it mean that as the Election Commission is conducting a voters’ registration exercise next month, that general elections could not be held this year?
I think it would be foolhardy for anyone to believe that general elections could not be held this year because of the snap 21-day voters’ registration exercise of the Election Commission next month.
However, if general elections are going to be held this year, why then bother about the voters’ registration exercise next month as they are not going to affect the outcome of next general elections?
This could also be a fatal presumption – for while it is most likely that general elections would be held this year, nobody should rule out the possibility however slight that it could be held early next year.
It is important that all DAP Branches should go all-out in the snap 21-day voters’ registration exercise and to use it as a trial run for the next general elections.
All DAP Branches should organise ceramahs and meet-the-people visits during this 21-day period, not only to get maximum registration of qualified voters, but also to take the opportunity to explain the importance of the next general elections to the people.
All States and Branches should therefore draw up a special programme in this 21-day voters’ registration period to prepare the people for the next general elections.
The challenge of the next general elections is how to transform the minor and limited liberalisation of education and economic measures into major and full liberalisation of nation-building policies
In using the 21-day snap voters’ registration exercise as a run-up to the next general elections, DAP should draw up a two-prong strategy which firstly, explains the objectives of the DAP in the next general elections and secondly, expose the lies and propaganda being spread by the MCA and Gerakan against the DAP.
The importance of the next general elections is not how the DAP will fare in the next general elections, but whether the DAP could create a new political situation where the minor and limited liberalisations in certain education and economic fields in the last three years could be translated into major and full liberalisation of entire nation-building policies.
The greatest challenge of the next general elections therefore is how to transform the minor and limited liberalisation of education, and economic measures into major and full liberalisation of nation-building policies.
Can the MCA and Gerakan be depended upon to be the agents, for such a transformation of the minor and limited liberalisation of education and economic measures into major and full liberalisation of nation-building policies where every Malaysian can enjoy an equal place under the Malaysian sun?
The answer must be a definite no, for how can MCA and Gerakan be the agents for the transformation of the minor and limited liberalisations into major and full liberalisations when they had nothing to do with the minor and limited liberalisations in the first place.
One important cause of the minor and limited liberalisation is because MCA and Gerakan failed to get support from the Chinese urban electorate consecutively for the second general elections resulting in the DAP’s second consecutive general elections victory in the urban areas in the 1990 general elections, which is a historic first in Malaysian electoral history.
The worse the electoral performance of the MCA and Gerakan, the better it is for the rights for the urban electorate
This is a great irony but true. The greater the 1990 election defeats of the MCA and Gerakan in parliamentary and state assembly seats in the second consecutive general elections, the better were the chances for a review and reappraisal of the injustices and inequalities in nation-building policies.
The 1990 general elections was the second consecutive general elections where the MCA and Gerakan failed to get the support of the Chinese urban electorate. In fact, immediately after the general elections, MCA President, Datuk Dr. Ling Liong Sik announced that the MCA was engaging professional consultants to find out why the MCA did so badly in the general elections.
When the MCA President and the entire MCA leadership were still at a loss why they could only get 20 to 25 per cent of Chinese electoral support as they had not received the findings from the professional consultants, the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamed announced on February 28, 1991 Vision 2020 as a direct response to the DAP’s two consecutive general elections successes in 1986 and 1990 general elections.
The 1990 general elections results is therefore one major cause for the minor and limited liberalisation of certain educational and economic measures in the past three years. These minor and limited liberalisations have nothing to do whatsoever with MCA and Gerakan.
The next general elections will decide whether the DAP can win a third consecutive general elections victory in the urban areas to translate the minor and limited liberalisations into a major and full liberalisation.
Challenge to MCA leadership to produce proof that I had opposed MCA campaign to raise funds from Chinese community for Chinese Independent Secondary Schools
The second prong of the strategy in the 21-day snap voters’ registration exercise next month is to counter and expose the campaign of lies and falsehoods being spread by the MCA and Gerakan, like the lies about the DAP supporting the hukum hudud enactment of PAS, that DAP is responsible for PAS coming into power in Kelantan and the latest, that I had opposed MCA launching its campaign to raise funds for the Chinese Independent Secondary Schools.
I challenge the MCA President, and the MCA leadership to produce proof that I had opposed MCA campaign to raise funds from Chinese community for Chinese Independent Secondary Schools.
DAP does not oppose MCA raising funds for Chinese Independent Secondary Schools. However, as Cabinet Ministers, MCA leaders have no reason to feel proud about raising funds from the Chinese community for Chinese Independent Secondary Schools when their first responsibility must be to get the Government and Cabinet to provide regular government funding for the Chinese Independent Secondary Schools.