Charles Santiago
The DAP’s crushing defeat in Sabah is more than just a local political tremor.
It’s a full-blown backlash, especially among ethnic Chinese voters who once formed the party’s core support. When your most loyal base turns away, it’s not a warning sign anymore – it’s a verdict.
If the DAP thinks this anger is confined to Sabah, it’s deluding itself. The same resentment is simmering in the peninsula. People are tired of being taken for granted, tired of mixed signals, and tired of a party that seems unsure of what it stands for whenever power is at stake.
The DAP needs to return to basics: people-centred issues, cost of living, livelihoods, governance, accountability, transparency and public service. These are the fundamentals that built its reputation; not political manoeuvring or coalition acrobatics. Losing sight of this is exactly how it lost Sabah.
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There’s also no escaping the issue of tone. A perception of arrogance has taken root: a sense that the party preaches more than it listens. That has to end. Voters don’t owe any party their loyalty. Parties owe the people humility and hard work.
For years, the DAP branded itself as the party of ordinary people, the party that dared to speak truth to power. That identity has blurred. To survive, it must behave like a party of the people again, and by that, I mean by being grounded, disciplined, and focused on service, not posturing.
Sabah’s results weren’t a fluke. They were a message. Whether the DAP listens now will determine if this is just a setback or the beginning of a nationwide slide.
Charles Santiago is a former MP and longtime activist.
AGENDA RAKYAT - Lima perkara utama
- Tegakkan maruah serta kualiti kehidupan rakyat
- Galakkan pembangunan saksama, lestari serta tangani krisis alam sekitar
- Raikan kerencaman dan keterangkuman
- Selamatkan demokrasi dan angkatkan keluhuran undang-undang
- Lawan rasuah dan kronisme
DAP took its hardcore and loyal supporters for granted. And the backlash was the Sabah election on Saturday.
Some of their good MPs in the past were treated badly: Fan Tew Teng, Lee Lam Thye, Fong Poh Kuan and Charles Santiago.