PUTRAJAYA, Aug 16 — DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke issued a public apology to party delegates on Sunday for failing to retain the Chennah state seat in Negeri Sembilan, a constituency he had held for three consecutive terms dating back to 2013, while urging the party not to be discouraged by a pattern of recent electoral setbacks.
Speaking during his policy address at the DAP national congress held at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre (PICC), Loke framed his decision to contest the Malay-majority seat not as a bid for personal political survival, but as a deliberate statement of intent — a test of whether DAP could demonstrate cross-ethnic appeal in terrain traditionally hostile to the party.
“I felt saddened that as the party secretary-general I was unable to retain the seat in the recent Negeri Sembilan state election, and for that I would like to apologise to all the delegates for this defeat,” Loke told congress.
The Chennah Result: A 688-Vote Margin That Carries Broader Implications
In the Negeri Sembilan state election, Loke lost the Chennah seat to MCA’s John Kong Choon by a majority of 688 votes — a result that, while numerically modest, carried significant symbolic weight given Loke’s stature within the party as its secretary-general.
Loke acknowledged the defeat candidly, noting that DAP had been unable to secure meaningful backing from two key communities in the constituency.
“I acknowledge that this mission was unsuccessful and we did not receive strong support from Malay voters or the Orang Asli community,” he said.
He characterised the result as illustrative of a deeper structural challenge facing the party — one that extends well beyond a single seat or a single election cycle.
“This is a major challenge for DAP — how we can break through this racial barrier so that our political journey can go further,” Loke said.
Loke Draws on DAP’s 60-Year History to Rally Delegates Against Despair
Rather than dwell on the Chennah loss in isolation, Loke sought to situate it within the broader sweep of DAP’s six-decade political history — a tenure marked by prolonged periods of opposition, repeated defeats, and eventual breakthroughs.
“We have almost 60 years of electoral experience and we suffered many defeats during our early struggles but we must not give up,” he told delegates.
The appeal appeared deliberately calibrated to address a mood of anxiety within the party, which has faced mounting internal debate over the pace of reform under the Unity Government led by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, as well as a string of disappointing electoral performances.
“To the delegates and party activists, let this be our motivation and inspiration — and as long as we do not give up, DAP’s future can still be embraced by the majority of Malaysians,” Loke said.
Congress Takes Up Unity Government Question Amid Growing Internal Pressure
The national congress, convened at PICC in Putrajaya, served as the formal arena for delegates to weigh in on what has become the defining question of DAP’s current political moment: whether the party should remain within the Unity Government or chart an independent course.
The debate has gained urgency in recent months as voices within the party — including Wanita DAP legal bureau chief Sangeet Kaur Deo — have publicly questioned the terms of DAP’s alliance with Anwar’s administration, arguing that the party’s silence on racial divisions and governance failures has eroded public confidence.
Loke, for his part, framed the congress itself as the appropriate venue to settle the question, leaving the decision to delegates rather than pronouncing a unilateral position from the party leadership.
The congress proceeded with a vote on the matter. Congress speaker Cha Kee Chin announced that 1,857 delegates voted in favour of the party remaining in the federal government until the end of the current parliamentary term, while 242 voted to leave — a decisive, if not unanimous, mandate for continuity.
The outcome reflects a party that, despite visible internal tensions, remains broadly committed to working within the existing government framework while pressing for faster and more substantive reform delivery.
Loke’s apology over Chennah, delivered in that same spirit of accountability, set the tone for a congress that sought to balance honest reckoning with forward momentum — acknowledging past failures while resisting the conclusion that those failures are terminal.
About the Author
