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PSM ready to join Pakatan
Free Malaysia Today - January 30, 2013
"We have notified Pakatan verbally in June and in writing in September last year," PSM secretary-general S Arutchelvan said during a press conference to unveil the party's manifesto for the coming 13th general election. "We are open to both electoral pact or partnership with Pakatan," Arutchelvan added.
PSM had previously worked with Pakatan based on an electoral pact without joining Pakatan. The party was formed in April 1998 but only got its registration approved in August 2008, months after the March 2008 general election.
It had its first experience in the general election when it contested for the Sungai Siput parliamentary seat on a DAP ticket in 1999.
PSM increased the number of seats contested in the 2004 general election. It contested two parliamentary seats – Sungai Siput in Perak and Subang in Selangor – and two state seats – Jalong in Perak and Bukit Lanjan in Selangor. They lost all the seats in both of the elections.
In 2008, PSM contested in Sungai Siput and three state seats – Kota Damansara, Semenyih and Jelapang.
Aside from Jelapang, PSM contested all the seats on a PKR ticket. In Jelapang it contested as an independent. It won the Sungai Siput and Kota Damansara seats.
The party has always taken an anti-Barisan Nasional stand and supported the Pakatan federal opposition alliance in Parliament.
PSM central committee member, who is also Sungai Siput MP, Dr D Michael Jeyakumar, meanwhile, said that PSM would be able to provide input on issues of the grassroots. "We have a sharper analysis on neo-liberalism policies and can have a lot of synergy with Pakatan," he said.
Party chairman Nasir Hashim, who is also Kota Damansara state assemblyman, added that PSM "went through the mill in championing the rights of the urban poor, estate and factory workers.
PSM's inclusion in Pakatan is expected to ease the tension over the Jelapang state seat. Both PSM and DAP have been at loggerheads over Jelapang.
As for the manifesto, PSM unveiled its nine point manifesto.
The nine are: Guarantee biafor workers rights, halting privatisation of public services, quality public housing, ending racial and religion based politics, eliminating corruption and power abuse, local food production promotion, recognising the rights of the Orang Asal and Orang Asli, environment protection, strengthening democratic institutions.
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