The late DAP stalwart Karpal Singh must have thought of a potential successor for his Bukit Gelugor parliamentary seat should anything happen to him. And the person he had in mind was probably his third son, Ramkarpal Singh.
Ramkarpal, a lawyer, could well be the right person to take over his father’s duties as an MP in his constituency. Growing up in a political family, Ramkarpal is well-versed in political affairs and has often represented his father in constituency matters. He is also a long-time member of the DAP.
The issue was heavily discussed in the social media in recent days. Netizens generally agreed that Ramkarpal was a good choice as he was said to possess his late father’s traits of fighting for justice and the downtrodden. He is also well-versed in Penang affairs.
As expected, there were some not in favour of Ramkarpal’s candidacy – the main worry was over the perpetuation of the Singh family dynasty in DAP.
Karpal’s two other sons, Jagdeep and Gobind, are also elected representatives. Jagdeep is a state assemblyman and a Penang executive councilor. Gobind is the MP for Puchong.
Fielding Ramkarpal in Bukit Gelugor will be three brothers too many. Somehow, people generally detest members of the same family being favoured for elective positions.
The most well-known DAP family dynasty is none other than the father-and-son team of Lim Kit Siang and Guan Eng. Lim Jr’s wife, Betty Chew, is also a state assemblywoman in Malacca. On a lower scale, there are the Perak DAP cousins of Datuk Ngeh Koo Ham and Nga Kor Ming.
It was earlier reported that Karpal had planned for Ramkarpal to be his successor in Bukit Gelugor should he be sentenced to prison due to his sedition conviction.
According to Karpal’s autobiography author Tim Donoghue, the veteran politician had Ramkarpal in mind.
Donoghue indicated that 38-year-old Ramkarpal, who was also injured in the crash which claimed Karpal’s life, was to be his father’s successor even before the 13th general election.
This is unconfirmed information that the author claimed Karpal related to him when he wrote the book, 'Karpal Singh – Tiger of Jelutong'.
Contacted by theantdaily, several DAP leaders declined to comment on the matter, stating they were coming to terms with Karpal’s tragic death while others said it was too early to speak about the possibility of Ramkarpal contesting the seat.
Meanwhile, as the country mourns the passing of Karpal, the Election Commission in a statement on April 21 said that it will meet on April 24 in response to the now-vacant Bukit Gelugor seat.
EC secretary Datuk Abdul Ghani Salleh said that the “EC was officially notified of the seat vacancy on April 21 following Karpal’s death”.
In a recent statement, DAP chairman Chow Kon Yeow said it has yet to shortlist candidates to contest the Bukit Gelugor seat and that Penang DAP committee will only hold a meeting this Thursday to discuss the parliamentary by-election.
Karpal lost his life in a tragic road crash on April 17 at the North-South Expressway near Gua Tempurung, Perak. His long-time aide, Michael Cornelius was also killed in the accident while Ramkarpal sustained minor injuries. An Indonesian domestic helper was seriously injured in the crash.
By Cecelia Jayanthi Victor
The Ant Daily
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