I refer to the malaysiakini article Machap - lessons for both MCA and DAP which provides a good coverage for the attention of both the opposition and the BN.

However, the trouble with this article is that it tends to over-read into the election results from a behaviouralist perspective. This typical theoretical approach practised by many American-educated scholars does not see the broader picture of the nature and implications of electoral politics in Malaysia.

Despite the changes and non-changes in the mixed constituency of Machap, it was the pernicious nature of the embedded BN racial politics and its monopoly on the use of patronage that provided the victory for the MCA.

In this respect, the micro-changes amplified by the authors do not have any major impact on the performance of the BN or the opposition.

Contrary to the views of the authors, there are not many lessons to be learnt by the MCA or the DAP.

It is very simple - whoever has the money and resources can expect to win handsomely in most electoral constituencies of Malaysia. The reverse logic applies to the DAP - that without the economic resources at its disposal, it has to accept the continued electoral hegemony of the BN.