The Democratic Action Party’s collapse in Sabah was not a fluke. It was a verdict. A cold, unmistakable judgment delivered by voters who once believed the party stood for something braver, cleaner, and sharper than the ordinary machinery of Malaysian politics. We know it and the DAP leadership know it too. DAP cannot survive another year of this drift, and neither can Malaysia because when a party loses all eight of its contests, including six once won with overwhelming majorities, we cannot call it a setback. It should call it what it is: a public repudiation. It was humiliating. DAP Secretary-General Loke Siew Fook’s response, which was the pledge to “compile feedback” and “accelerate reforms”, arrived with the timidity of a politician who still thinks there is time to repair a deep suppurating wound with a sticking plaster. It is pathetic. The voters did not express mild frustration. They issued a warning shot meant to shake the national political class awake. Does Loke think they were looking for another inquiry, another roundtable, another promise of acceleration? No. They were demanding something more basic, more human, and more urgent: accountability. Loke acknowledged a “strong and unmistakable message” and he stopped one step short of what leadership requires: he failed to apologise, because in politics, the failure to say “sorry”, is the presence of denial. The downward spiral of DAP began long before Sabah, and everyone, including those in DAP knows it. It didn’t require an emergency central executive committee (CEC) meeting on 1 December for the leadership to acknowledge what voters have long known and have tried to tell them thus far. For two years, the Unity Government has taken the public’s patience for granted. DAP became the face of that inertia and it was not because it held power, but because it once held moral authority. It once stood for principled resistance, fearless speech and reformist discipline. Today, it speaks softly, defensively, and with one eye permanently fixed on its coalition partners. It was respected when it was in the Opposition, today, the voters have turned their backs on the party. This is where the hard truth cannot be avoided. DAP’s collapse is inseparable from Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s leadership. This is not because he wished harm on the party, but because his leadership style made harm unavoidable. Think about it. Malaysia did not get a reformist government at the end of 2022, Malaysia got a government terrified of upsetting anyone. Sadly, DAP paid the price. This government was supposed to be a vessel for reform. Instead, it became a show-case of hesitation. Every major reform was delayed, diluted, or quietly shelved. When major issues cropped up, people looked to the DAP to speak up for them. All they received was silence. Remember DAP’s muted response to the “No-further-action” verdict in Teoh Beng Hock’s case? The Prime Minister, Anwar, cannot think he is blameless. Once a symbol of courage and governance, who carried the peoples’ hope and aspirations for […]
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