DAP will not suffer the same fate it did in Sabah in Penang because the state is its bastion - but the party may lose more seats compared to the 19 it has now.
This was the observation made by two - time Datuk Keramat assemblyman Lim Boo Chang, a veteran political analyst.
Lim, who made history as the only assemblyperson to have defected to another party while in office when he crossed - over from Gerakan to MCA in 1999, said that the sentiments remained entrenched with DAP among the non - Muslims.
"But DAP may lose seats as the electorate the world over now wants check and balance. They know absolute power corrupts."
DAP was whitewashed at the recent state election in Sabah after it was convincingly beaten in the eight state seats it contested.
The last time DAP fared badly at any electoral contest was in 2004.
He said if PAS becomes stronger in the Malay heartland, the non-Muslims would likewise stay with DAP or its current coalition of Pakatan Harapan (PH).
With a new political landscape following the cooperation of Barisan Nasional with PH and allies of convenience with Sabah and Sarawak-based parties, Lim said that politicians must cope with the new realities out there.
"I think it is no longer about principled politics but about positions and of course power. The people may not see the best representation that they can find if politicians are just preoccupied with the politics of power."
Lim said this at an interview to mark the launching of his third book - a Mandarin -essay of his media narrative pieces entitled: "The Rule of Law in the Federation."
Lim, the son of Gerakan founder - the late Datuk Lim Ee Heong, was a unique politician, driven by a conviction of wanting to serve rather than just holding positions, hence he quit Gerakan, joined MCA, quit it to join PKR before retiring.
Now 70, Lim said that the book is about the importance of the law in the present political context and his articulates it in seven chapters devoted to the Malaysians of Chinese descent’s perception of federation law.
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As for party hopping, Lim said that the legislation of anti-hopping was good but stressed that a politician should be allowed to have freedom of association since it is enshrined under the Federal Constitution.
"If he or she defects due to materialism or positional gain then it is wrong."
Lim regretted that he quit Gerakan when he was an assemblyman.
"I should have quit when I was not holding any position. The move generated a perception that I was greedy for power or materialistic."
Lim said that he resigned because then Penang Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon and his supporters could no longer work with him even though he won the Datuk Keramat seat on a Gerakan ticket.
"I left because I joined politics to serve. And if my rights were denied, I needed to find a new platform to serve, not to enrich myself. That is a big difference."
He asked if the late Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu should be described as a "hopper?"
Chong Eu founded four political parties; he founded the Radical Party, the United Democratic Party, MCA and Gerakan, said Lim.
"How come he was not belittled?"
Chong Eu just wanted to serve and needed the best platform to deliver, which Lim thinks he did because his legacy lives on in his beloved Penang until today.
The Bayan Lepas Free Industrial Zone where the seven electronic "samurais" were personally lured by Chong Eu to Penang, still have their production hubs here.
As for the future, Lim leaves it to the wisdom of the voters to figure who are the best candidates; hoping that the nobility of politics in wanting to serve is the best attribute of any person vying to become a representative. - December 11, 2025
