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SHAH ALAM – The decision to allow former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to serve the remainder of his prison sentence under house arrest has placed DAP at a political crossroads, with political analyst Dr Ong Kian Ming urging the party to turn its disagreement into concrete action.
The former Bangi MP, who resigned from DAP last month after 14 years with the party said DAP should consider issuing an ultimatum to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to remove Umno from the unity government Cabinet.
He said such a move would demonstrate that Pakatan Harapan (PH), particularly DAP, was serious about its disagreement with Umno’s position on seeking a pardon for Najib and raising funds to pay the RM50 million fine imposed under the house arrest arrangement.
"My recommendation, not as a party member, but as a political analyst, is for DAP to issue an ultimatum to the Prime Minister to remove Umno from the unity government Cabinet next week, before the Cabinet meeting on Wednesday.
"Such an ultimatum to Anwar must come with a credible threat. If not, Anwar would see this as a mere statement by DAP, not backed by any concrete action. DAP must say that it will resign from the Cabinet before the meeting if Anwar does not sack Umno from the Cabinet," he said in a Facebook post, today.
Ong said DAP should not simply announce that it respected the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s decision while simultaneously expressing disagreement, arguing that its supporters were looking for more concrete action.
He said DAP’s decision should be viewed against what he described as a “red line” over the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) issue and Najib’s house arrest.
He also said DAP should not blame Federal Territories Minister Hannah Yeoh, who sits on the Pardons Board, for carrying out its decision, arguing that the matter ultimately involved the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s prerogative under the Federal Constitution.
"If anyone should resign immediately, it should probably be Nga Kor Ming, who said in an interview before the Johor state election that he would resign from his ministerial position if Barisan Nasional won big in Johor and if Najib was freed. But knowing DAP, it would take a collective leadership position on this issue, which is the right thing to do," he said.
Ong also cautioned Umno against assuming that support for the party among Malay voters would remain strong regardless of its position on Najib.
He said Umno should consider whether its continued support for Najib could drive voters towards Pas and Perikatan Nasional, especially if voters saw the party as refusing to acknowledge mistakes linked to the 1MDB scandal.
Ong’s comments came a day after the Federal Territories Pardons Board announced that Najib would serve the remainder of his prison sentence under house arrest, subject to conditions including a RM50 million fine.
