Teluk Intan shows DAP can’t bank on ‘brand’ alone, analysts say

KUALA LUMPUR, June 3 ― When the DAP decided to field virtual unknown Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud for the Teluk Intan by-election, it had banked on a bedrock of support that was once thought unshakeable.

But her defeat in the constituency that the late Seah Leong Peng had won with a 7,313-vote majority last year demonstrated that the DAP can no longer sail to victory on the strength of its “brand” alone, according to political analysts.

This chink was exacerbated when it gambled on political novice Dyana, a 26-year-old Malay woman, in the conservative and Chinese-majority constituency in Perak.

“Candidate quality does matter and in places where it is not urban and not many young voters, the DAP brand cannot alone overcome the adversities to party will have to face,” the director of independent pollster Merdeka Center, Ibrahim Suffian, told The Malay Mail Online.

“In introducing a candidate such as Dyana, groundwork is very important. This is why BN works very hard in different ways to reach out to the voters,” said Ibrahim.

In Saturday’s Teluk Intan by-election triggered by Seah’s death last month, Dyana Sofya lost to Barisan Nasional’s (BN) Datuk Mah Siew Keong’s by 238 votes.

During the 12-day campaign period, Dyana harped on the rising cost of living, the impact of the controversial Goods and Services Tax (GST) and empowering women apart from defending her credentials against scores of personal attacks.

Unlike DAP, Mah, who was the constituency two-term MP before losing to DAP’s M. Manogaran in 2008, campaign with promises of development, even going as far as pledging a Unesco heritage listing for Teluk Intan’s Leaning Tower and a new university.

Ibrahim said that for semi-rural constituencies with an older generation that is mostly involved in agriculture, a personal and relatable touch often trumps the more highbrow national issues.

“With a young and inexperienced candidate, you have to spend more time to explain to the voters the kind of politics you inspire to achieve and that means having to go house-to-house to explain that vision.

“Twelve days of campaigning is just not enough with a new candidate,” Ibrahim said.

He also said the Chinese community that made up for 41.9 per cent of Teluk Intan’s 60,349  registered voters were swayed by the pragmatism of choosing a minister as its representative.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak pledged to put Mah in the Cabinet if the latter won.

In early analysis of the poll. DAP noted that Chinese support fell from 85 per cent in Election 2013 to 70 per cent in last week’s poll.

Political observer Khoo Kay Peng also pinpointed flaws in the DAP’s campaign strategy for touting Dyana as the youngest MP and as the party’s first Malay woman MP if elected, saying it “did not strike a chord” with local voters.

“She may have all the potential to be a third-line leader, but at the moment she is not ready. As an elected member, must be able to relate to the people, policy issues will take a back seat… policies have to relate and how it will be implemented and solve Teluk Intan’s issues,” said Khoo.

Khoo said being a “parachute candidate”, Dyana should have worked the ground and gain insight on local politics.

“It will be tough if parachute candidate does not have a big enough stature, only a few people have proven to be successful doing that ― Lim Kit Siang and Lim Guan Eng.

“In fact, even (Opposition Leader Datuk Seri) Anwar Ibrahim does dare not move from Permatang Pauh,” he said.

Khoo also said DAP should also attempt more substantial reforms such as ensuring a minimum of 30 per cent Malay representation in the central leadership were it serious in wanting to dismantle Malaysia’s decades-old communal politics.

“DAP should take the position that race is no longer an issue and the best of Malaysians we will put forward regardless of race,” he said.

“Voters have shown admirable ability to accept, a very good example is Raub,” said Khoo, referring DAP MP Mohd Ariff Sabri Abdul Aziz, who defeated MCA in the area with a Chinese minority.

DAP fielded Dyana in the Chinese-majority constituency of Teluk Intan in an apparent bid to burnish its multicultural credentials.

But the move was seen as unsettling the Chinese community, particularly the older generation of voters there.