KUALA LUMPUR – DAP remains committed to engaging with the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government on critical matters in an effort to mitigate the effects of Covid-19, said the opposition party’s political education director.
In an online forum yesterday, Liew Ching Tong reiterated that DAP was willing to talk with PN on subjects such as a confidence and supply agreement in parliament to delay this year’s Sarawak elections, which require amending the federal constitution.
“This needs two-thirds (majority in parliament). But if the government talks with the opposition, we are ready to talk, for the sake of the people and so that we do not hold an election during Covid-19,” he said during an online forum titled “Prolog: Ada apa dengan DAP” (Prologue: What’s with DAP?) yesterday evening.
The talk hosted on Dialektika TV, was moderated by Sayed Munawar Sayed Mohd Mustar, and featured Ilham Centre research fellow Dr Hamidin Abd Hamid.
Liew, who is also former deputy defence minister, said DAP was ready to play a role in discussions that did not merely touch on political cooperation, but also on openly talking about a confidence and supply deal to postpone elections.
Such matters had also been mooted by his colleague and party whip Seremban MP Anthony Loke Siew Fook.
“We can reach a consensus where an election can be postponed for two years, until 2023. I feel that all of this can be worked out, but I feel that the government is not ready.”
But, in terms of political cooperation, Liew said the party was not willing to cross a “red line” in working with the “court cluster” consisting of Umno MPs labelled as kleptocrats.
He added that DAP’s willingness to work based on a confidence on supply agreement was reflected in Perak, which saw a change in state government, but he stopped short of relating the matter to the ousting of then menteri besar Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu in December last year. – The Vibes, 19 January, 2021
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