No public office, no excuse to stop serving voters, Loke tells NS DAP

DAP leaders in Negeri Sembilan must continue serving residents even if they no longer hold public office, says party secretary-general Loke Siew Fook.

Loke said former local councillors and village community management council (MPKK) members should continue helping residents who approach them for assistance.

“If voters come for help, please do everything that you can to assist them. Don’t say that now that I am no longer in the (state) government or local councils, I can’t help,” he said in his speech at the Negeri Sembilan DAP convention in Seremban.

“That is not the right way. If people still seek our help even though we are no longer in the state government, it shows they still have confidence in DAP and Pakatan Harapan.”

Loke also urged DAP MPs and assemblymen in the state to support grassroots leaders in serving the public.

“Although we no longer have state allocations, that does not mean we can’t do anything.

“We used to be in the opposition for decades, and we did not receive allocations. Yet, we found ways to continue our services to the people.”

DAP currently holds nine seats in the state assembly, down from the 11 it won in the 2023 state election. The party lost Chennah and Repah to MCA in the August election.

Loke, who stepped down as Negeri Sembilan DAP chairman after losing Chennah, also said he would not defend his seat on the state committee when the chapter holds its leadership elections next year.

He said he wanted to make way for fresh faces to lead the state chapter and needed to focus on leading the party at the national level.

Loke also reflected on Negeri Sembilan DAP’s growth over the past 22 years, from winning just two state seats in the 2004 general election to securing parliamentary and state seats in subsequent elections and taking over the state government in 2018.

He said he was glad to have led the state chapter for 22 years and supported the need to pass the baton to new leaders.

“Despite being a new state chief, (J Arul Kumar) has a wealth of experience, having worked with me for 10 years. I am confident that under Arul’s leadership, Negeri Sembilan DAP will move forward and continue to excel.”

Loke also urged Negeri Sembilan DAP to prepare for all eventualities amid political uncertainty in the state, where menteri besar Ismail Lasim currently has no executive councillors to assist him.

“We need to prepare for any possibility, which includes a (state) election. We don’t know that (will happen). But this is something we need to be prepared for.

“Our focus should not be problems facing our opponents … our focus should be on strengthening our party,” he said.

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