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PPP rebrands itself to stay relevant

The People’s Progressive Party (PPP), a multi-racial party in the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, has rebranded itself as “myPPP” in the hopes resuscitating its fortunes ahead of the 14th general election. The rebranding comes at a time when the PPP is finding it hard to become relevant in a political landscape that is dominated by bigger multi-racial parties such as the DAP, PKR and to a lesser extent Gerakan. The party’s delegates, who caught the media’s attention with their colourful fedora hats, approved amendments to the party’s constitution which include changes to its name and logo in an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) in Kuala Lumpur today. Party president Tan Sri M. Kayveas said the three Ps in the name will now stand for peace, progress and prosperity and that it will be guided by nine core principles. There principles are centred on instilling a sense of loyalty to Malaysia and encouraging the Bangsa Malaysia concept, all meant to boost the party’s multi-racial image. In his speech, Kayveas said current trends in Malaysian society made it hard to build a multi-racial party that was evenly represented by all communities but PPP was nearly there. He, however, spent considerable time pouring scorn on Malaysians who criticised the government. “This is the biggest issue these days. More than any other country, we spend more effort and money in making the country look bad, whether locally or overseas,” Kayveas said in his speech. “MyPPP wants to instil a sense of pride in being Malaysian of not being disconnected with Malaysia,” he said. Before it changed to myPPP, the 62-year-old PPP was one Malaysia’s earliest political parties. At its height, it ruled the Perak government from 1969 to 1974. Its presence in Malaysian politics has steadily declined since then, due to infighting and it has only managed to win one to three parliamentary and seat seats in Perak in the 2004 and 2008 general elections. In the 13th general elections in 2013, it did not manage to win a single seat. Speaking to The Malaysian Insider later, Kayveas said seats or positions in government were no longer primary concerns for the party which wants to make itself more attractive to younger Malaysians. “Seats do not decide a party’s relevance. We are relevant in our approach. Our bigger intention is to nurture a generation of Malaysians who are proud to be Malaysian. “In times of trouble, in economic slowdowns, you must be proud to be Malaysian and to fight for each other”, Kayveas said, but did not specify how it planned to disseminate that message. Its focus on youth is one reason myPPP was simplifying the party’s image. For instance it is eschewing staid uniforms common in other parties in favour of simple white-collared polo shirts, trousers and shoes, said Kayveas. It’s why they allowed members at the assembly today to wear fedoras, since it helped create a more relaxed and an easy-going atmosphere that would hopefully appeal to the youths. “We don’t want to emphasise too much the serious aspects of politics, which is associated with parliament being attacked in the media. “We want to be more of a NGO or a club that is focused on serving the community.” MyPPP’s efforts seem to be paying off as close to half of the delegates at the EGM were individuals below 40. “I came to the PPP because I saw they were serious about wanting to groom the youth to become leaders and to serve the country,” said delegate Muhammad Yassir Arafat Kassim. His friend Mark Yogaraj echoed this sentiment, adding that compared to the other parties he has seen, both in BN and Opposition, myPPP was serious about nurturing youth leaders. “Other parties just talk about, but they are not serious about it,” said Yogaraj. – November 15, 2015.