MP SPEAKS | One of the most memorable things which DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng said to me during our first conversation back in October 2001 was that if he were to contest in the Kota Melaka parliamentary seat as an independent candidate (he was their three-term MP from 1986 to 1998), he would definitely lose the contest despite his own personal popularity in the constituency.

He made this point to emphasise the importance of the DAP to his political career and that apart from the party, he (and others) would not have a leg to stand on, politically.

Most voters do not understand nor see the value of party work which an elected representative must do on a regular basis. This is not surprising since most politicians have not really bothered to explain the importance of their political work to their voters.

From personal experience, I have seen how party work, if done right, can strengthen an MPs effectiveness in carrying out his or her duties at the local, state, and national levels.

However, I can also see how the party work, if not properly structured and incentivised, can easily lead to outcomes that may benefit the MP and his party members but leave the voters either no better or sometimes, even worse off.

At the very basic level, my party work starts with...