On Sunday, the famous Tow Boo Keong temple in the heart of Ipoh town, was alive with the chatter and laughter of about 2,000 people partying.

Tudung-clad Muslim women and men in long-sleeved batiks , were seen sharing the same dinner table, enjoying halal food with their Chinese and Indian friends.

Passers-by could easily mistake the function for a big wedding dinner if not for the 20-ft colourful banner, displaying the unmistakable 'blue eye' logo of Parti Keadilan Rakyat with the wordings ' Malam Bersama Rakyat' .

Amidst reports of waning support, defection of its key leaders to rival party Umno and internal squabbling for seats, Chinese support for Keadilan in Ipoh seems to be expanding.

Claiming that they were unfazed about the turn-coats and half-truths churned out by the government-controlled media, party supporters dismissed the bad news as "an election ploy and money politics at work".

"The foreign media, arm-chair observers and journalists should go to the ground and seek the truth for themselves.

"Other than bad news about the opposition, there are also good news," said Madam Lee Chai Ying, a middle-aged woman, who brought her whole family to the dinner.

Spoke of Anwar

When Keadilan president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail arrived at about 9pm, she was greeted by a pair of lion dancers and the singing of a Chinese motivational song which delighted the audience.

The mostly Chinese crowd, who came from all over Ipoh, later heard speeches by other party heavyweights like vice-president Tian Chua, Youth leader Mohd Ezam Mohd Nor and Perak deputy chief Dr Lee Boon Chye.

The erosion of mother tongue education and increasing cases of corruption in the country were the hot topics of the evening.

Wan Azizah, who is Permatang Pauh member of Parliament, spoke candidly about her husband Anwar Ibrahim and his close relationship with the Chinese community for he had once been a temporary teacher at Bukit Mertajam's Jit Sin High School.

She commended the former deputy prime minister, who is currently serving a 15-year jail term in Sungai Buloh for sodomy and corruption, for his impeccable knowledge of Chinese philosophy.

"He told me that one must learn from Confucius if one wants to understand Chinese people," she said.

She said he had no qualm about exploring Chinese traditions and cultures, even when he was the No 2 in the government.

"Once when we were in China, we visited a famous temple and there, he wrapped his arms around the tree of prosperity.

"Wealth does not only come in dollars and cents. Anwar is rich with courage, with the spirit of reformasi," she said to loud applause.

Earlier, the audience had looked at her with glazed eyes when she spoke of Anwar's sufferings in prison and his on-going battle with the court of law.

Meanwhile, state leaders were happy with the large turn-out at the dinner, despite the perceived fear of punishment for being linked to the opposition.

"Your presence here does not only show that you support Parti Keadilan Rakyat, it shows that you support reformasi and a new politics for Malaysia that is free of corruption, democratic and progressive," said Lee, who is a heart surgeon.

Ezam's fury

But it was the dynamic and charismatic Ezam who thrilled the crowd most with his fiery speech and expose' of corrupt government officials.

Ezam, who was formerly Anwar's political secretary, claimed that there were four Anti-Corruption Agency files whose investigation had been completed and the "corrupters should be brought to court and put in jail".

"But it is Anwar who had been imprisoned, the man who fought against corruption while in office," he said.

"I'm not just talking about it. I have lodged four police reports about those cases and the individuals involved but Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has failed to take action," he added.

The dinner was also attended by Peark DAP members and supporters of Parti Sosialis Malaysia, led by vice-president Dr D Jeyakumar.

And joining party leaders at the main table was veteran Chinese educationist Loot Ting Yee, who later spoke passionately on the controversial issue of mother tongue.

"You have the power to change the government. Bring back local elections," said Loot, who is former deputy chairperson of the outspoken Chinese education movement, Dong Jiao Zong.

"Reject MCA and Gerakan because they have sold out the Chinese where mother tongue education is concerned," he added.

SUSAN LOONE, a former malaysiakini journalist, is based in Penang.