Its national organising secretary, Anthony Loke, told reporters that DAP had not come to the point of calling for a statewide snap polls but if it ever decided to do so, the party would first discuss the matter with its political allies within Pakatan Harapan (PH).
“We will not make a unilateral decision on this. If and when we come to a decision, we will deliberate and justify to the public as well,” he said in a press conference at the DAP headquarters here today.
He said the matter was not even part of the agenda to be discussed in the party’s next Central Executive Committee (CEC) meeting.
Accompanying Loke this afternoon was DAP National Publicity Secretary Tony Pua, who said claims of the snap polls were raised by certain quarters and that alone could not be the basis for an action or even a comment.
Suggestions of a snap election in Penang surfaced following Gerakan President Mah Siew Keong’s statement that Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng’s prosecution had swung the Chinese votes back to DAP.
To this, Loke said Mah was right to realise that the political persecution against Lim would only anger the public, and this would obviously work against Gerakan and MCA.
“Politically, this will not benefit the two parties, especially in Penang. It also goes to show that Umno doesn’t care for Gerakan and MCA, but cares only for its own survival.”
Among those who had also commented on a possible snap polls was BN minister Abdul Rahman Dahlan.
Taking to Twitter, the Kota Belud MP said it was merely “another cheap political stunt” from DAP, very much like the party’s donation drive and the claim that Lim’s arrest was an act of political persecution.
“DAP should start identifying a new chief minister, just in case the court decides that Lim is indeed guilty,” he said.