Gerakan says Perkasa was poison to BN in GE13

Gerakan has described Malay right wing group Perkasa as having poisoned the BN during the last general election and that it had also failed to assist the ruling coalition to win more votes.

In a tit-for-tat spat with Perkasa, Gerakan's newly-elected central committee member Dr Dominic Lau said Perkasa had caused the ruling coalition to lose more votes, including that of the Malays, Chinese and Indians.

"The most obvious example would be in Pasir Mas, where Perkasa president Ibrahim Ali himself contested and failed to get the support from the locals, including the Malays," Lau (left) said in a statement today.

Reiterating that Gerakan does not require any help from Perkasa, he said the movement was making the situation in the country worse for the ruling coalition.

"Although it claims to be representing the Malays, Perkasa failed to receive the majority support of the Malay community, while at the same time causes racial polarisation by releasing racist statements from time to time," Lau added.

Yesterday, Ibrahim added fuel to the fire by urging Gerakan to dissolve itself and for the members to join MCA, because the party failed to win the Chinese votes in the last general election.

'Stop giving publicity to Perkasa'
Lau also urged the media to stop publishing articles on Perkasa, as this was akin to giving it free publicity and that this would destroy Malaysian unity.

"Gerakan's ideology is a 1Malaysia concept, regardless of political beliefs and religion. If Ibrahim does not understand the meaning of multiracial politics, Gerakan will be more than glad to explain it to
him, for free," he said.

While Gerakan respects Perkasa's role as a non-governmental organisation advancing Malay interests, Lau said, his party rejects the extreme way in which Perkasa is hurting the other communities.

He urged Ibrahim to toe the line in leading Perkasa and not to just be an opportunistic politician.