THE Penang DAP has officially launched its election machinery to face the upcoming 15th General Election (GE15).
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, who is also the Penang DAP chairman, said the state DAP is one of the earliest political parties in the country to launch its election machinery.
“This shows that we are ready to defend our strong mandate in the upcoming general election to continue administering the state and also to reclaim Putrajaya.
“Although we don’t know the exact date of GE15, the Penang DAP must be prepared to face the upcoming general election as it involves the future of our beloved state and country.
“Overall, the state party branches are all geared-up and ready to play their parts to help the party and also our allies.
“We must work as a team, with the same mission and objective, to continue retaining Penang for the fourth term. At the same time, helping our component parties to excel in the seats they contested in the state.
“We hope that the state PKR and Amanah will also launch their election machinery as soon as possible to face the state and national elections together as a team,” Chow said in his fiery speech during the launching of the state DAP election machinery at The Top on Level 5 in Komtar today.
Among those who present during the launching ceremony were DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke, DAP national chairman Lim Guan Eng, state DAP deputy chairman Prof Dr P. Ramasamy, state DAP vice-chairman Jagdeep Singh Deo and Zairil Khir Johari, state DAP secretary Lim Hui Ying, Iskandar Puteri MP Lim Kit Siang, state Amanah chairman Dr Roslan Ahmad and state PKR vice-chairman Goh Choon Aik.
According to Chow, who is also the state Pakatan Harapan (PH) chairman, the upcoming GE15 would be the most challenging one ever faced by the PH coalition due to multi-cornered fights for state and parliamentary seats.
“We are expecting multi-cornered fights from various political parties and coalitions such as Perikatan Nasional (PN), Barisan Nasional (BN), Gerakan Tanah Air (GTA) and many others.
“So, we need the best strategy to win the people’s votes and hearts.
“Nevertheless, we are ready for multi-cornered fights and have made the necessary preparations to face the general election since last year,” he said.
Chow added that the PH coalition in the state has a proven track record during the 15 years of administration in Penang.
“This is proven with various policies and programmes implemented by us which benefit the people and the state as a whole.
“The PH administration in Penang has shown a great example in leading the state with almost zero corruption and full integrity compared with other states with different political administrations.
“Therefore, I am confident that the people of Penang will once again continue to vote for the PH coalition in the upcoming general election,” he said.
Loke commended the Penang DAP for its commitment to face the upcoming GE15 with the launch of the election machinery.
“I was also informed that our merchandise such as T-shirts, flags, caps and banners have all been printed.
“The state party branches are also ready to face the GE15.
“This shows that the Penang DAP is fully committed to defending Penang in the upcoming election,” he said.
According to Loke, the national DAP leadership has very high hope for Penang DAP.
“This is because Penang is the strongest DAP-led state government.
“So, we want to see a 100% win for the state and parliamentary seats contested by candidates from the party, as shown in the previous election.
“And I believe this is possible based on our proven track record during the 15 years of administration in Penang,” he added.