Speech by DAP Organising Secretary, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, to members and supporters of the DAP at Puchong, 14m.s. on Wednesday, January 22, 1969 at 5p.m.
For four years, the Alliance government has frozen grassroots democracy by suspending local council elections. The reason is that the Alliance is afraid that the opposition will capture many of the town and local councils and demonstrate its ability to produce a dynamic, clean honest and effective administration.
The Alliance is afraid that if the opposition is allowed to do this, then the opposition will be securing a firm base for greater victories in the Parliamentary and State general elections.
In other words, the Alliance have put its party interest above national interests. The same considerations govern its amendment of the Malaysian Constitution to suspend by-election in Salak and in Penang, because it feared that the opposition will win.
We know that the Alliance government is seriously considering doing away with elected councils altogether, or having a mixed system of elected and nominated councilors, to ensure that the Alliance government can nominate its stooges and reward its puppets. Continue reading DAP calls for local council elections before general elections