KUALA LUMPUR: The Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition must band together and contest under a common logo to win the next general election.
Outgoing DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng said this was vital as history has shown that coalition parties have a higher chance of achieving victory through such an approach.
"PH must show it is united and move as a team. A common logo in PH would help to demonstrate that unity of purpose.
"While DAP is tempted to use the rocket logo, DAP will stick to the coalition logo of PH to help us win together.
"No single party has won the general elections, only coalition parties have succeeded in winning power since Merdeka.
"We need to share victories with our allies through a common logo so that we can win more seats," said Lim in his policy speech at the party's 17th National Congress in Shah Alam today.
Also present were PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, PKR advisory council chairman Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, Amanah president Mohamad Sabu and United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation president Datuk Seri Wilfred Madius Tangau.
Lim said PH has to do a better job in communicating their message to the people if they want to regain their support.
He said in order to succeed, they should not blame others for the loss of popular support but assess their own weaknesses as to why there is a lower voter turnout and thus, face up to their record.
"DAP had learnt its lessons from the Melaka and Sarawak state elections. Our efforts in correcting our weaknesses have shown some progress with DAP mitigating our losses by winning 10 out of 14 contested, despite the lower turnout.
"In these challenging times, DAP needs to be steadfast to our principles, practice collective leadership and continuously reach out and engage with members and the public. The state elections have shown that good service to voters is critical to winning," he said.
Lim, who has held the secretary-general post for nine years, pledged to work closely with his successor alongside the new generation of DAP leaders.
He said he was glad that the party had managed to nurture the next two generations of DAP leaders who will continue the legacy of the first batch of young men and women who founded the party 56 years ago.
"I am proud that through my tenure as secretary-general, DAP has transformed itself from aspiring to become the largest opposition party to aspiring to be the next government.
"We have shown that DAP is capable of governing Malaysia," he added.