Trouble has been brewing since the dramatic May 2018 general election when DAP, together with its other allies in the Pakatan Harapan coalition and former premier Mahathir Mohamad, ousted the decades-old ruling political alliance headed by UMNO.
The Lims ruffled the feathers of several DAP factions when a clutch of young politicians aligned with the family were given key ministerial and government positions.
But the new government, which was led by Mahathir, lasted only 22 months and collapsed partly because of deep differences between the DAP and the other ethnic Malay-based parties, leading to a period of serious political instability.
It was only after the November 2022 national polls that political stability returned to Malaysia when Anwar assumed the premiership and formed a unity government comprising four other political coalitions.
ALLEGATIONS OF FAVOURITISM
An uneasy calm has prevailed in the DAP.
The party performed well in the elections, winning 40 parliamentary seats out of the 55 it contested.
But antagonism against the Lim family only deepened over allegations of favoritism following the decision by the leadership to drop several veteran members of parliament from the election line-up in favour of relatively new faces seen to be aligned with the family.
Santiago, who is now the current chairman of the National Water Services Commission, was among the casualties in the last election when he was dropped from defending his position as the Member of Parliament for the Klang, a port town outside the capital Kuala Lumpur.
Phoon Wing Keong of local think tank Centre for Malaysian Chinese Studies, said the impact of the generational shift taking place in DAP, “with senior party veterans stepping down and the middle generation taking full control of the party’s direction”, will test public sentiment of the party that has long relied on ethnic non-Malays, particularly the Chinese community, for support.
“With no senior leaders remaining, can Loke’s leadership gain the confidence of the party?” wondered Phoon.
Loke, who replaced Lim Guan Eng as secretary-general in March 2022, is widely seen as less strident compared to the Lims and his relations with the leaders of the coalition members in the Anwar government are more cordial.
UNDERCURRENTS
Santiago and other DAP leaders also noted an undercurrent that the party’s hardcore supporters are noticing.
Multi-racial in outlook but predominantly Chinese in composition, the DAP draws much of its support from urban voters and professionals in big towns and cities across Malaysia.
The party has long been vocal against corruption and education issues particularly in the Chinese community, and in pushing for a more even distribution of economic opportunities.
Under Loke’s leadership as secretary-general of DAP, the party has become less outspoken and, according to frustrated DAP politicians, more comfortable to play a subservient role in government.
Factions aligned to the Lims are arguing that Guan Eng should be allowed to play a prominent role in the party because he remains the only DAP leader willing to speak out about the shortcomings in government and other issues, such as the controversial decision by the country’s Attorney General to discontinue corruption charges against UMNO politicians, who now have roles in government.
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