The DAP’s credentials have been the subject of public discussion after a recent survey showed distrust of the party among rural Malay voters.

Salleh, writing on his blog, noted that recent discussions online had also centred on the DAP fielding more Malay candidates at the next general election, especially in seats held by PAS.

“Of course, they mean the seats that PAS owns in the urban or ‘mixed’ areas and not seats in the Malay heartland, where the voters are 90 per cent or more Malay and therefore where DAP would not stand a chance of winning,” Salleh said.

He quoted journalist and political commentator the late MGG Pillai as having said that Umno and PAS were Malay parties but PKR only a Malay-based multi-racial party because the bulk of its membership and support base is Malay although its leaders and election candidates were not.

He pointed out that the DAP, although claiming to be a multi-racial party was more of a Chinese-based multi-racial party.

“Whether it can legitimately claim to be a true Malaysian party (meaning not Chinese-based) is a matter that is still open for discussion because of the lack of a strong presence of Malays in the party,” he said.

Just because DAP fields a few Malay candidates does not take away the fact the DAP is a Chinese party,” he said.

Salleh pointed out that the multi-racial Barisan Nasional coalition was formed by the late Tun Abdul Razak Hussein to create a true non-race-based Malaysian party out of several race-based parties.

He said DAP would have to do more to shed its Chinese image. “The make-up of its leadership plus its support base needs to reflect its claims,” he said. He suggested that the DAP could not meet its claim unless its support base reflected Malaysia’s population distribution of 60 per cent bumiputera, with about 50 per cent or so Malays.

READ MORE: To fight anti-Malay image, DAP seeks acceptance by all