YOURSAY | ‘If the opposition wants to beat the odds, avoid competing against one another.’

Mahathir urges opposition to put coalition before party

Clever Voter: The opposition parties could do with three basics.

One - put a big picture guy to lead. Two - remove members who cannot accept the future. Three - stop being petty. There must be common rules where members who cannot differentiate personal and party should go.

If the opposition wants to beat the odds, avoid competing against one another. The exception being PAS, consider them to be part of BN.

There is no need for one common logo if the registrar disallows it. The general election is for BN to lose, and odds of 5,000-1 for the opposition to win.

Interestingly, the reliance on former PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad to bring all together reflects the dearth of talent. It’s about time for the 40-somethings from the coalition to speak the same language and display common values.

Spinnot: What is the opposition coalition going to do if it succeeded in its ‘main objective’ of unseating BN led by Najib Abdul Razak?

What is the coalition going to do with regard to such issues as independence of the judiciary and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), electoral reform, and the alleged institutionalised racist policies?

These are some of the questions the voters must ask and not blindly give their votes to the coalition.

Unspin: It is worth reminding the ‘kids’ at Pakatan that a lot of people voted for the opposition at the last two GEs not because they think that the opposition is better, but because they are tired of BN's corruption and arrogance.

Ideally, it will be great if the opposition does not get that ‘protest vote’ in the next GE so that we can teach them a lesson since some of the opposition leaders have become quite arrogant themselves after a couple of terms.

However, if BN were to regain their two-third majority in the next GE, we can say finally goodbye to the Malaysia that we once knew. Therein lies our dilemma.

Dinosaur: Whatever it is, PAS only wanted to contest 50 seats, supposedly in cahoots with Umno/BN.

It will be a one-to-one direct contest, like what happened in Pasir Mas in 2013 - Perkasa president Ibrahim Ali against PAS. Umno did not contest to support Perkasa.

This time Umno/BN will not contest where PAS is contesting and vice-versa. PAS will support all BN candidates and vice-versa. Some PAS MPs will be appointed ministers and deputy ministers, just like the Hindraf leader who became a deputy minister in 2013.

Pakatan and Bersatu can keep going on talking about a common logo, manifesto, and seats. Dr M and his group are behind time. The train is already about to leave while Dr M & Co are still talking about which carriage to board.

Umno/BN/PAS are already quietly in the train. Indeed, they will win bigger this time.

NNFC: I couldn't agree more with Mahathir. The struggle to remove BN is more important than any other issue we can think of.

Opposition members must put aside their personal differences and work towards that end. Otherwise, we would have lost our opportunity of a lifetime.

Sarawakian: The most important thing right now is for Dr M to admit his mistakes and ask the rakyat for forgiveness and a second chance.

I see signs of that already from recent statements by Dr M. Otherwise, his agenda is constantly questioned and the opposition cannot move forward.

Anonymous Hotplate: Why are the opposition parties still wasting time talking about what they could do alone?

There is not much time left for them to sincerely join together and 'fight' BN under one common logo as are being done by Umno, MCA, MIC, Gerakan, etc. While these parties have their own logo, they stand for election on BN's dacing.

So please hurry up and come up with one simple logo to send the message to the voters as soon as possible.

Proarte: Having a common logo will give the impression of stability, which is what the rakyat want to see.

There is no reason why individual party logos cannot be put alongside the common logo. Nurul Izzah Anwar must defer to Mahathir when it comes to strategy.

Her reasoning for not having a common logo is illogical and insulting to the electorate. If they can accept new parties like Amanah and Bersatu, why not a new logo?

Goldee: To be effective, we need a common logo for the opposition coalition party. Print the parties’ symbols into the coalition party logo, which is easily recognised by the voters and supporters.

Wira: For the opposition to have a clear understanding, there must be a common policy framework upon which a future government should adhere to.

Otherwise, it is better that those who no longer subscribe to the common policy leave the coalition, just like what PAS did to Pakatan Rakyat.

Thirdeye: A lot of talk, a lot of suggestions, a lot of ideas but the component opposition parties can't seem to agree to anything concrete, even when dealing with slight or petty differences.

Often they are so pathetic to listen to and to watch.

Responsible Malaysian: You need to have a crystal-clear mind without being influenced by your emotions. Tell yourselves what is your goal and how to achieve it within the limited available time.

And act fast.

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