PETALING JAYA: An analyst has the dismissed the possibility of a formalised political cooperation between Umno and DAP in the foreseeable future.
Kamarul Zaman Yusoff of Universiti Utara Malaysia told FMT he believed there would not be any such cooperation even if there were leadership changes in either or both parties.
He noted that one of the reasons Umno had given for its refusal to work with DAP was that it could not go along with Lim Guan Eng, Lim Kit Siang and other top leaders of the Chinese-dominated party, but he added: “In my opinion, it is more because of the party’s ideology.”
He said leadership changes might lead only to an easing of tension.
“I do not see possible political cooperation between these parties in the near future, not within these five years at the least,” he added.
Umno Supreme Council member Puad Zarkashi recently urged his party against being rigid in ruling out working with others, including DAP and opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim.
He said the slogan “no Anwar, no DAP” might not be relevant at all times since political scenarios could change.
Kamarul commented that a call such as the one made by Puad risked a backlash from Umno members.
“Umno members have been indoctrinated with the thought that DAP is anti-Malay since DAP’s inception in 1966,” he said. “They have also been indoctrinated with the thought that Anwar is a traitor to the Malay cause since he was sacked from Umno in 1998.”
Former academic Azmi Hassan said Umno had ruled out working with Anwar because the opposition leader relied too much on DAP’s support in order to survive in politics.
“Working with Anwar is like supporting DAP,” he said.
However, he concurred with Puad, saying extraordinary times called for extraordinary measures.
He said: “Who would have thought 10 months ago that Umno and PPBM would work together, having been against each other during the campaign for the 14th general election?
“So, why limit yourself even to working with DAP, especially when no one can predict the outcome of GE15? The one thing that is sure is that no party can form a government without a coalition.”