Anwar an asset to Pakatan, roars DAP's lion

By S Rutra
FMT EXCLUSIVE KUALA LUMPUR: DAP national chairman Karpal Singh will celebrate his 70th birthday on June 28. His mane may have turned silver with age, but the “Lion of Jelutong”, despite being confined to a wheelchair after a road accident, is still ferocious as ever and continues to strike fear in the hearts of his opponents, be it in Parliament or a courtroom.
His cubs are a chip off the old block, especially his sons Gobind and Jagdeep, who are an MP and state assemblyman respectively. The two, like father, are also known for their tenacity.
In an exclusive interview with FMT, the senior lawyer and Bukit Gelugor MP speaks on several issues, including the secular DAP's dicey partnership with the Islamic PAS and whether Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim is a liability to the coalition.
Karpal, who is Anwar's lead counsel in the latter's ongoing sodomy trial, does not believe that the PKR supremo is a cause for concern.
On the contrary, he feels that Anwar is an asset, and credits him as a politician who managed to conquer the odds after being sacked and thrown in jail; and re-invent himself as a force to be recokned with.
“I believe he is an asset to Pakatan. We must look at the bigger picture. Despite his prosecution, he remains a charismatic leader. This can be seen in the way he is garnering Malay support.
“Just look at the number of people who throng his ceramah, the numbers never dwindle. This shows how much of impact he has made on the Malays,” he said.
Asked if this perception will change if Anwar is found guilty, Karpal insisted that even then, Anwar cannot be considered a liability to Pakatan and his jailing will just boost his image.
“If he is found guilty and sent to jail, he will become a martyr... during the 1999 and 2008 general elections, he was the crucial factor in securing votes for the opposition,” he said.
PKR undergoing cleansing process
Karpal also disagreed that with the current spate of defections, the Anwar-led PKR looked poised to take its Pakatan partners, DAP and PAS, to the political grave as well.
“I don't think so. Look at the last general election's result, I consider this (2008 election) one of the most democractic where nobody ever dreamt that certain seats could be won.
“It did not matter who contested (they still won). It was a repeat of the 1969 election where many who were not qualified to be candidates were elected as MPs,” he said.
When a tsunami hits, Karpal said, “you get the best and the worst of fish” being washed up to shore, and now they (the latter) are “showing their true colours”.
Since every cloud has its silver lining, the veteran politician believes that PKR is undergoing a cleasing process of those who do not deserve to be part of its struggle.
“The core PKR leaders are still there, there are some good and qualified MPs. Only a handful are a liability, it is better for them to leave now instead of jumping ship in the next election,” he said.
Below are excerpts from the interview:
FMT: What about the difference in policies among Pakatan parties?
This where PKR comes in, with Anwar being some sort of a buffer between PAS and DAP. I think PKR, especially Anwar, is crucial as a unifying factor, being able to get these two parties together. This was considered as something impossible in the past.
In 1999, we had reached some understanding on issues like the Islamic state but our own supporters disagreed with me and (DAP supremo) Lim Kit Siang. In my own (previous) constituency in Jelutong where I contested for the sixth time, a Chinese woman came up to me and told me that she was not going to support me because we (DAP) were working with an extremist group (PAS). She complained that even Kit Siang had let down the Chinese community.
I tried explaining that it was just an election understanding, but I still got thrown out of Jelutong, a seat which Barisan Nasional never won before. I had a difficult time in making a comeback and we only managed to do it in 2004. By having common strategies, we were no longer adamant about old ideologies and had put aside our differences. This happened in India during the 1990s, where all parties joined forces with (Hindu right wing party) BJP in toppling the ruling government led by the Congress Party.
Are you saying that Pakatan parties have abandoned their basic principles?
The basic principles remain, and we would always be committed to them. This is clear from what happened in 2001 when we pulled out from Barisan Alternatif, immediately after the 9/11 attack in the United States.
This resulted in Kit Siang and myself being voted back into Parliament. Many did not expect us to make a comeback. The Chinese told us that they had forgiven us. But in 2008, joining forces with PKR and PAS worked well. Now we realise that Pakatan ould work on many common issues such as human rights, the economy and many more.
For example in Sibu, we achieved what was unthinkable in the past, where PAS and PKR campaigned with us (to help DAP clinch the Chinese majority seat, which was a BN stronghold). PAS flags were hoisted alongside DAP flags.
What about Pakatan's chances to form the next government?
That's not something which is impossile. Looking at the reaction of people during our ceramah whether they are Malays, Chinese or Indians. In fact, PAS has announced that they want to list non-Muslims as candidates in the next general election. Many Indians have also joined the PAS supporters club. This shows that PAS has become more liberal.