Pakatan Harapan's reliance on former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad to address rural Malays is a testament of the coalition's failure to do so itself, Parti Sosialis Malaysia veteran Dr Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj says.

Speaking at a forum on Mahathir's role in Harapan last night, Jeyakumar said Harapan had only itself to blame for having to rely on Mahathir, who has a chequered history and once an enemy of many Harapan leaders, to lead the current opposition coalition.

"(At present, Harapan only talks of) 1MDB, the ring... all these urban issues. That is why it is forced to bring Mahathir in.

"The decision to bring Mahathir in is because earlier on, for five years, the opposition has failed to deal with the concerns of the rural folk.

"This is the weakness of Harapan, which has brought us to the situation of having to invite the old man in," Jeyakumar said at the forum titled "Mahathir: Agent of Change or Agent of Destruction?" in Kuala Lumpur last night.

Jeyakumar said that currently the BN, as the ruling party, ensures that subsidies and incentives reach the rural folk, who tend to work in the agriculture sector.

Until now, he said, Harapan has not announced its stance on these subsidies and incentives, which was why the rural folk were worried about their livelihood.

"Yes, the rural folk know that 1MDB is problematic, but they are worried that you (Harapan) will stop their subsidies.

"We can say we will continue all these welfares Umno gives you (the rural folk), but we will make it better and cut off the cronies in the middle. Won't that be popular?" asked Jeyakumar, a two-term Sungai Siput MP.

Unfortunately, he said, Harapan continued to bring up urban issues without addressing the true concerns about their livelihood the rural folk have.

Mahathir's appeal

Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu), which Mahathir now leads, has positioned itself as an alternative to Umno, which it argues has deviated from its original struggles and now only serves Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.

After Bersatu formalised its membership in Harapan, Mahathir was appointed the coalition's chairperson, with Anwar Ibrahim as the de facto leader and Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail as its president.

Meanwhile, veteran social activist Hishamuddin Rais (photo) said that there can be no denying that Mahathir has an appeal among the Malays, which Harapan does not possess.

Responding to a question from the floor, Hishamuddin said that during the two-day Bersih 4 rally in 2015, the Malay turnout was poor on the first day but better on the second.

This, said Hishamuddin, could be attributed to Mahathir's appearance on the evening of the first day.

"By night time, Mahathir came down to the streets... The next day, there were a lot more Malay participants," he said.

Having Mahathir on board had also significantly drawn numbers at events in Felda areas, whereas previous attempts drew only a handful.

Parti Amanah Negara president Mohamad Sabu, who was detained without trial under the Internal Security Act 1960, twice, during the Mahathir administration, said Harapan needed mass support to win.

"So, with Mahathir, who formed Bersatu, we see that it brings the support of the Malays and changes the perception of the Malays, where previously it was only Umno that could (control the Malay narrative)," Mohamad, popularly known as Mat Sabu, said.

He acknowledged that BN's long tenure as the ruling party had blurred the lines between the coalition and government.

"Especially in the rural areas, Umno and the government cannot be separated because the indoctrination has been going on for too long, so the rakyat dare not make any changes, even though they recognise that corruption is taking place," Mat Sabu said.

But Harapan's goal, he said, was not merely to get rid of BN, but to bring back democracy and the well-being of the rakyat.

"So, if in five years the next government elected is also corrupt, it would be easy for them (the rakyat) to remove that government," he added.