Speaking to FMT, Santiago said he believed Bersih 2.0 was among the only NGOs that could persuade voters to come out on polling day and “vote for change”.
“Over the years, Bersih has successfully mobilised people by the thousands so it has a following. If it sets out to mobilise, people might follow its direction and advice,” he said.
Barisan Nasional (BN) supporters and members have often accused Bersih of being an arm of the opposition.
This, however, has been strongly denied by Bersih 2.0 chairperson Maria Chin Abdullah.
In October 2016, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Rahman Dahlan had accused Bersih of being out to topple BN.
Maria told FMT she believed the reason for the confusion was because of the misconception that a voter’s power starts and ends at the polling booth.
“Bersih is calling for institutional reforms, regardless of who is in power,” she said.
“That’s the power that voters hold and that’s why they must come out and vote so you can tell your leaders ‘we voted you in and if you don’t perform then we can vote you out’.”
As to who Bersih wanted to see in power, Maria said whoever it was, it should be a leader who was aware of the issues affecting Malaysians today and wanted to do something about it.
“Felda, for example, is in such a mess when it was once our backbone for economic growth for the Bottom 40% (B40).
“Now the whole thing is collapsing in our faces.”
The B40 group refers to Malaysian households earning RM3,900 a month or less.
“We want leaders who understand the issues that need improvement and won’t let it happen again,” Maria said.
Santiago said what Bersih 2.0 wanted was in line with what Pakatan Harapan wanted and that’s the reason it seemed Pakatan-friendly.
“They want free and fair elections which means an independent Election Commission (EC) and a level playing field between parties. That’s what Pakatan is promising.”
Recently, PKR’s Kelana Jaya MP Wong Chen expressed concern over young voters being disillusioned with politics and political parties, saying this could affect the opposition’s chances of retaining the urban seats at the next national polls.
Kelana Jaya’s Wong Chen still worried despite big win in GE13