Former minister Zaid Ibrahim has told DAP's Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud that she will lose again if elections in the country are not free and fair.

"Until we have a proper Election Commission (EC) that is impartial and willing to do its duty to ensure free and fair elections, you should not waste your time in another contest.

"There are seats like Bukit Gelugor or Bukit Bintang where you can win despite the present EC, but you will not get those seats.

"Most seats contested are generally closely balanced in terms of support, and only a free and fair election will give someone like you a chance," he said in a blog posting.

Zaid added that even if DAP had fielded someone else in the by-election, it would have still lost.

"DAP did not make a mistake in fielding you. It would have lost even if it had put up someone else.

"You have been personally abused and maligned, and money has been used freely to deny you your victory.

"For as long as an election is not conducted on a level playing field - and the EC is powerless to ensure a fair election - talking of the comparative strengths and weaknesses of candidates is idiotic," he said.

Dyana was defeated by Gerakan president Mah Siew Keong in a razor-thin 238-vote margin in last Saturday's contest.

'Refocus on free and fair elections'

Instead, Zaid said, the battle for free and fair elections needs to be given a new breath and Dyana should be part of that battle.

This, he said, would involve convincing DAP national adviser Lim Kit Siang, PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim and PAS deputy president Mohamad Sabu to putting the focus again on free and fair elections.

"Try to persuade Anwar Ibrahim that the focus of the opposition should be on making fair elections a reality.

"This struggle has more meaning than the one he has been pursuing for the past 15 years, which is to persuade the people that grave injustices were perpetrated against him personally," Zaid said.

He said the opposition needed to put its struggle in focus, rather than the "fancy idea" it would win Putrajaya on the combined platforms of injustice, hudud and multi-racialism respectively by PKR, PAS and DAP.

Furthermore, he said the NGOs also needed to refocus on free and fair election.

"Bersih must be reignited and Ambiga Sreenevasan be brought back to spearhead the movement," he said.

Also, Zaid said, Hindraf too needed to be re-energised to mobilise the Indian community for change.

"Do not worry too much about Putrajaya, like so many of your friends in the Pakatan Rakyat. It will only happen if we have free and fair elections, and not before," he said.

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