DAP using Mahathir as 'work horse' to gain Malay votes

Makkal Sakti president Datuk R.S Thanenthiran said the reason DAP agreed to appoint the Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) chairman as the Pakatan Harapan chairman was merely to garner Malay votes.

Tun Dr Mahathir while delivering a speech at a function in Penang on Thursday said the people will support the opposition because he (Tun Mahathir) was at the helm of Pakatan Harapan and added that (Pakatan Harapan) can win the 14th General Election (GE14).

"In reality though PPBM only has one seat in Parliament while DAP has 38 seats, meaning the majority of seats in the opposition belong to DAP. We can see therefore that the DAP are just using Tun Mahathir as a 'work horse'," he told Bernama at a Hari Raya Aidilfitri open house hosted by Makkal Sakti, here Sunday.

Thanenthiran hoped the former Prime Minister would realise the actual situation and not gamble the future of the Malays by asking them to support DAP simply to exact revenge against UMNO.

Meanwhile, Thanenthiran said based on Makkal Sakti's observation, about 65 to 70 percent of the 2 million India voters in the country will support Barisan Nasional (BN) in the coming GE14 because only BN can safeguard their welfare.

He said Makkal Sakti with 123,000 members is prepared to mobilise its election machinery to ensure victory for BN.

"Whether Makkal Sakti will be given a seat during the GE14, I will leave it to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak to make a decision. Whether the party is given a seat or not is not important because what is important is for BN to win and continue serving the people. We want a party that can serve the people all the time and not just when the election is near," he said.

He said Makkal Sakti had always supported policies introduced by the government and the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and therefore would not pressure the leadership during the general election.

"You can be anywhere without a post like Makkal Sakti that has been a BN friendly party for almost nine years. We have been with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and we have been serving the people without a seat," he said.