There is no real debate on who is the rightful Perak menteri besar and which coalition should rule Perak. It is all too obvious - Pakatan lost the state because they had failed to keep it. How?

They did not know that they won the state with such a slim margin, so much so their existence in the state was hanging in the balance. And that they could be trounced at any time if three persons from their side jumped over the fence to go on to the other side.

And this was what had happened. It left Pakatan red-faced. Because they realised that they could not keep their own people who could ensure the status quo be maintained till the next general election.

In fact, Barisan Nasional could also be trounced out of parliament if more than 30 of its members are to crossover to Pakatan. But they never did, despite the projections made by Anwar Ibrahim that they would.

The Pakatan government of Perak should realise that they could offer some lucky people ownership of land for 999 years, but they could not ensure their existence for 11 months.

And they made a ‘big deal' about the one Barisan assembly persons in Perak who said he had crossed over to Pakatan which turned out to be a ploy to test their mettle. So if it was okay for Barisan members to crossover to Pakatan, why is not okay for Pakatan members to crossover to Barisan?

PKR, which is a party in the Pakatan Rakyat coalition, can still dream of grabbing some from Barisan Nasional to crossover, hoping that they could wrest control of Parliament and form the new federal government.

I am sure if there is one Barisan member of Parliament or state assembly person who wants to cross over to Pakatan, they would still welcome him with open arms, even if it is another trick. Yes, Pakatan is that desperate to play the numbers game. It is news and they can bask in the limelight for a while.

Pakatan had done many things which have not been done or practiced in Malaysian politics so much so they proudly announced how they were sending three of their members of Parliament to try and hound more than 30 Barisan MPs who were going to Taiwan.

The Pakatan threesome failed to do what they were sent to Taiwan to do, and came back home empty-handed.

What if they had succeeded in getting the Barisan MPs to crossover to Pakatan? Wouldn't they also not want to take the matter a few steps further by demanding that they be allowed to replace Barisan?

But the sad reality is that Pakatan lost Perak in a tussle which had rules that were first introduced by Pakatan. If Pakatan could try to do it, why couldn't some of their own members do the same by jumping over to Barisan, and in the process create a new state government for Perak?

The game should be over with the swearing of loyalty for Barisan as announced by the three former Pakatan members of the state assembly.

But Pakatan was not happy with the outcome of the game they had introduced and tried to drag the matter to court by trying to regain control of the state using legal means and sometimes, illegal means, too, by showing open defiance to the courts and common sense.

Common sense says that Pakatan had lost. So they should not waste their time trying to get back what they had lost in the numbers game.

What they should do is reconsider their strategy and do away with trying to grab members of Parliament or state assemblies from the other side to come to their own side, so they could use them to turn the tables around for their benefit.

My view is that Pakatan and especially the DAP in Perak and whole country are feeling so sorry for themselves. They are also so ashamed with themselves for trying to use a non-conventional way to wrest control of Parliament.

In the end, they are the ones who lost. I think if there is a national disgrace which is also ludicrous, it is this Perak debacle and no other. And if this is how some of their leaders and members behave, then it won't be much of a surprise if they are trounced in the next general elections.

Many Malaysian voters and members of the public have become enraged with the antics of Pakatan leaders for misbehaving themselves. They had been given the chance to prove themselves and the voters were willing to give them more space to prove themselves as a worthy opposition with a bigger and louder voice in the parliament and the state assemblies. But they are not using it.

Instead, they are still taking matters to the streets. Perhaps they should be reminded again and again that laws of the land cannot be formulated on the streets; they can only be done in the Parliament and nowhere else. In the streets, laws can only be broken to pieces and be trampled upon.

Pakatan should realise that their position in Malaysian politics is not fixed. It is also courtesy of the charitable voters who gave them a chance to prove themselves. But from what everybody can see, they have not performed well as the opposition as well as the government of the few states they now control.

I predict Pakatan won't survive for long if they continue with their antics.