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SEREMBAN – DAP expects the party to remain a target of its opponents, who are likely to continue pushing race-based narratives throughout the campaign period for the Negeri Sembilan state election beginning July 18.
DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke said various negative narratives against DAP would continue to be used in an attempt to create a negative perception of the party.
He said such tactics were seen as the most effective political weapon by opponents to defeat Pakatan Harapan (PH) in the upcoming election.
"What other effective strategy do our opponents have besides blaming DAP and claiming that whatever issues happen in Negeri Sembilan are all DAP's fault?
"In fact, such campaigns have already started and we have heard about them because we also have people monitoring what they are doing. The expectation is that the narrative being pushed will be that everything is DAP's fault," he said in his speech during the announcement of the DAP candidate for the Temiang state seat here on Monday.
The Seremban MP said Perikatan Nasional (PN), particularly Pas, had begun pushing such narratives to ensure DAP and PH are defeated in the election.
As an example, Loke cited a Facebook post by Tan Sri Annuar Musa which stated that "if you cannot win, you can still make your opponent lose".
"This is their strategy. They cannot win, but to defeat PH, they are using proxies.
"This is clearly the approach used in the Johor state election. That is why they did not field candidates in many seats and instructed their supporters to vote for BN candidates," he said.
During his speech, Anthony also claimed that DAP had never promoted racial sentiments throughout its political struggle and had proven its ability to administer Negeri Sembilan effectively with PH since 2018.
He urged voters in the state not to be influenced by such campaign narratives.
Meanwhile, Loke called on Pas and Barisan Nasional (BN) to be transparent with the people of Negeri Sembilan regarding their cooperation in the upcoming state election.
"Any party has the right to cooperate with whoever they choose, but they must be honest with the people.
"I want to ask the stance of BN component parties, especially MCA and MIC, regarding this matter. Do not hide it; provide a clear picture to the people," he said.
Previously, it was reported that Pas had confirmed it was in talks with BN ahead of the Negeri Sembilan state election.
Pas president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang was reported to have said that discussions between both parties were ongoing and had shown positive progress.
