COMMENT | After months of speculation, it is finally official. On Sept 17, 2020, a day after Malaysia Day, Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman announced in a radio interview with English language station BFM that he will register a new political party with the Registrar of Societies (ROS).

Indeed, on the same day, he and several of the new party’s sponsors showed up at the ROS to submit the registration papers. The new party’s name is Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (Muda) and its sponsors and members are made out of a mixture of activists, academics, professionals and entrepreneurs.

According to Syed Saddiq, there will no age limit for members of the new party. It is not a party exclusively for young people. It is also open to all ethnicities; it is not a race-based or religious-based party.

It seems that Muda will be a multi-racial political party that is led by young people...