FOR a party that's less than three months old, Parti Kesejahteraan Insan Tanah Air (Kita) is certainly ambitious.
Last Saturday, its president Datuk Zaid Ibrahim told the press that Kita's aim was to become the country's main opposition party.
It would also cooperate with "just about anyone", including the newly-introduced Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement (MCLM).
Zaid had given a 15 to 20-year timeframe to achieve the ambition.
But is that possible, considering the many brickbats Kita had received even before its rather pompous launch on Jan 19?
"Have I done anything that failed? I have had many setbacks but I have not failed," Zaid said in a recent interview. He was responding to critics that Kita would die a natural death, judging from the lack of excitement it had sparked since it was formed.
For the record, Zaid had transformed the 1995 politically dormant and all-Muslim Angkatan Keadilan Insan Malaysia into Kita -- a party which rejects phoney and pretentious politics, as he puts it.
He was sanguine at the prospect of Kita being an instant celebrity.
"I have no charisma; nor do I have a magic wand to make Kita instantly accepted and understood. (But) I will not respond to all other infantile remarks," Zaid said.
Some experts had claimed that the party had no support and worse, no plans and machinery.
Zaid, whose political career has seen him shifting from Umno to Parti Keadilan Rakyat, and now Kita, in the span of two years, considered his latest party different from the rest.
"We want to try to change how democracy works in this country."
For a start, Zaid said the party wanted to have an intelligent discourse with the government on policies and would shun boycotts and shouting matches in Parliament.
These disclosures are what he called "healthy and worthy convictions for the good of the country."
But to become the main opposition party, Kita definitely needs more than that. Credible leaders and candidates are still the winning points for most political parties.
"We are interviewing prospective leaders and candidates. Good political leaders have no problems attracting followers, but finding them is not easy," Zaid admitted. He added that Kita would not contest in elections if it could not find suitable candidates, and has not set out to determine where it should contest.
"I think we have another year before the next general election, so we have time," he said.
MCLM president Haris Ibrahim emphasised that the party would be offering its candidates to non-Barisan Nasional parties in the next general election.
"We are willing to work with anybody who is pro-reform and pro-rakyat. If that is Kita's philosophy, I do not see any problems," he said.
So far, the party has named four candidates to contest the 13th general election -- two lawyers, a dentist and an activist. Haris, however, was reserved when told there were views that Kita would actually be a BN-friendly party.
"Until I hear it from Zaid, I will not believe it," he added.
He also dismissed talk that a third force was established to prop up PKR as it lacks credible candidates.
"We hear a lot of things on the grapevine," he added.
