They said a move was reminiscent of the infamous “Kick out Kit Siang” (KOKS) campaign in the late 90s, which saw a group in Penang attempt to get DAP stalwart Lim Kit Siang out of the state following the party’s disastrous performance in the 1995 general election.

Veteran DAP grassroots leader S Neelamekan, the Lunas branch chief and a party member since 1986, said some leaders appear to have lost sight of its original struggles and are being influenced by certain “outside” forces in their efforts to oust Guan Eng from the leadership.

He said the presence of a deep state within the party is obvious as there appears to be an organised movement to get delegates to embarrass Guan Eng by either voting him out of the 30 elected central executive committee (CEC) members or reducing his votes drastically.

“Is there an agenda to climb the political ladder faster? Is a leader trying to please the prime minister to secure his position by weakening certain DAP leaders so that the government remains unchecked?

“There is growing talk that young leaders are using money politics to undermine senior leaders. The question is, where are these young leaders getting their funding from? Who is backing them to weaken DAP from within?” said Neelamekan, who claims to speak on behalf of the veterans’ group.

He said an incident at the weekend’s gathering in Penang to honour Kit Siang’s service to the party has given rise to talk that there is an open feud in the party between Guan Eng’s group and another led by Penang DAP chairman Steven Sim.

“At the dinner, a group was seen campaigning openly against Guan Eng. This resulted in an argument between the supporters,” he said.

A party source said this move to oust Guan Eng is also aimed at pleasing the Malay electorate who are said to prefer a more moderate and compromising leader to helm DAP when campaigning in the next general election due in about two years.

He said even a senior component party leader had apparently told Guan Eng that his “days as party leader are numbered as the knives are out”.

Neelamekan said for now, DAP needs the combination of Guan Eng, secretary-general Loke Siew Fook and vice-chairman Nga Kor Ming to clean up the party as many junior leaders are trying to betray the leaders who built DAP.

“We must not allow external forces to take control of DAP. If we allow this, DAP will lose its principles and its struggle for justice.

“If this happens, the integrity of the party and the trust of the people who have supported DAP for decades will be shattered,” he said.