GEORGE TOWN – Questions have arisen over the fates of two local DAP leaders in Penang for the upcoming 15th general election (GE15), which will see polling conducted only for parliamentary constituencies in the state.
This is in view of both Deputy Chief Minister II P. Ramasamy and State Executive Councillor Jagdeep Singh Deo respectively holding the Prai and Datuk Keramat seats in the state assembly.
There are speculations about whether there will be moves to field them elsewhere from their current seats.
While Jagdeep, son of late Karpal Singh who was chairman of DAP, may be allowed to continue at the state level, there are questions about whether Ramasamy should also be allowed a similar run.
“We have restricted the terms of chief ministership in Penang to two terms,” said an insider, referring to the state assembly passing a motion limiting the chief minister’s tenure to two terms.
“It is the law. So should we allow a deputy chief minister into a fourth term? That may be too much.”
Ramasamy was appointed as deputy chief minister in 2008, soon after he won the Prai state seat in the general election that year.
He also served as Batu Kawan MP from 2008 to 2013.
There is uncertainty over whether Ramasamy is keen to either retire or shift to a parliamentary seat. The latter option is interesting as Kasthuri Patto recently announced that she had decided not to be fielded to defend the Batu Kawan seat.
If either of these happens and Pakatan Harapan ends up retaining power in the state, all eyes would be on who is appointed to succeed as deputy chief minister II, a position understood to be reserved for an assemblyman of Indian ethnicity.
Also, there is always a need to inject new blood into the state lineup to prevent complacency from creeping into any organisation, said the insiders.
There are also reports that Penang DAP chief Chow Kon Yeow, who is the chief minister, may be compelled to contest for the Batu Kawan parliamentary seat to appease certain parties.
Chow, widely hailed as a loyalist, did the same thing in 2018 when at the last juncture he was nominated to contest the Tanjong parliamentary seat after DAP chairman Lim Guan Eng’s sister Lim Hui Ying, who was the original candidate there, decided to opt-out.
In the end, the hope is that every candidate realises that the common enemy is Barisan Nasional.
Ramasamy gave a subtle indication on social media recently. While paying tribute to Charles Santiago who will not be fielded again to defend the Klang parliamentary seat, he urged everyone to emulate Santiago’s message of working as a team.
Until Parliament was dissolved earlier this month, DAP held seven of the 13 parliamentary seats in Penang.
According to insiders, the party will likely field incumbents in at least four out of these seven seats.
The list of candidates for the rest remains under negotiation.
Chief among those who will defend their seats is Guan Eng who will again contest in Bagan where he has been MP since 2008.
It is hoped that Penang DAP can also work as a team in fielding the best team possible to defend the party’s “World Cup”, which is the elections in Penang, the party’s stronghold, said an insider. – The Vibes, October 28, 2022
