MCA leaders say ready to consider return to Putrajaya

PETALING JAYA, Aug 13 — MCA leaders appear to be warming to suggestions that they rejoin the government, agreeing their presence in the Umno-heavy administration could help improve national policies and race relations.

MCA vice-president Datuk Chor Chee Heung said the party leadership should reconsider its earlier resolve to stay out of government now that it has earned the blessings from numerous individuals to make a comeback.
“Now since a lot of Chinese community leaders and Zaid Ibrahim have asked to go back [and] join government, I believe [the] MCA top leadership must go back to re-discuss and to revisit the issue,” Chor told The Malay Mail Online in a text message yesterday.
“If the support from the Chinese community is too disappointing, we, MCA wouldn’t dare to ask to join the government,” he added.
The MCA has stood by its resolution in the 2011 and 2012 party general assemblies not to accept any government post after Election 2013 if it performed worse than in the 2008 general election.
In Election 2013, the Barisan Nasional (BN) component party recorded an embarrassing defeat when it won in only seven parliamentary and 11 state seats.
Chor, a former minister, acknowledged that it had been due to the MCA’s flagging support from the Chinese community that the party leadership decided to reject all government posts after the May 5 polls.
But according to MCA deputy president Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai earlier this week, many Chinese community groups now want the party back in government, believing their interests could be better represented if the MCA still has a place in Putrajaya.
Yesterday, former Cabinet minister Datuk Zaid Ibrahim agreed that the MCA should rejoin Cabinet but stressed that the party’s first priority should be tackling the racial issues in national policies.
“There is no way we can overcome economic and financial challenges in the future if the country is divided along racial, religious and ethnic lines, so a well-crafted Race Relations Act is urgently required,” the former law minister said in a blog posting.
The law, he added, must be there for punitive reasons or at least to discourage racially-charged remarks or actions from spreading.
“Discriminatory practices must be outlawed,” he said.
“The rights of citizens must be respected, regardless of whether their forefathers came from China, India or Sulawesi. Immediate action must be taken against racist conduct and remarks,” the former Umno leader said.
MCA vice-president Datuk Donald Lim agreed with Zaid’s statement that racial issues should be a top priority in the country.
“A Race Relations Act will enable us to take necessary against politicians who are extremist from exploiting our multiracial status,” the MCA Selangor chief said in a text message to The Malay Mail Online.
However, MCA secretary-general Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha said if the party joins the government, it should be for the overall purpose of contributing to the country.
“I have no objection to MCA rejoining the government. It must be for a purpose, not just to fill a position,” he said.
He disagreed with Zaid’s view and asked why the politician had pointed specifically to racial issues.
“Why is it that MCA should enter the government for that particular reason? MCA joining the government must be for the purpose to contribute for the betterment of the country.
“But this is only about race,” Kong said of Zaid’s view.
He added that BN is a coalition that has taken care of all the races, pointing out that the country has been harmonious during its rule.
MCA central committee member Datuk Ti Lian Ker said it was unfair to always “pass the buck” to the MCA, noting that people often do not want to take ownership and responsibility of problems and work towards a solution.
“Whereas the issue is not peculiar to a party, the issue is Malaysian in nature,” the MCA central committee member said, saying these “Malaysian issues” had been inherited over the years.
Ti said the elected representatives in Parliament should instead carry out their duty to resolve issues through the legislative body.
“People should stop pinpointing MCA whereas members of Parliament should take up issues courageously in Parliament but many members of Parliament are just playing to the gallery,” he said, observing that there was a lack of healthy debate in Parliament.
“If members of Parliament feel strongly, they should take it up in Parliament and lobby towards change or introduction of laws,” the Kuantan MCA division chief said.
Ti said MPs across the divide only speak vocally on issues that do not touch on race and religion, despite these being the “real issues” that he said were plaguing the country.
“They do not stand up and debate on issues which touch on religion and race because they fear backlash from voters,” he said.
Both Ti and Kong noted the irony in Zaid’s call against the current public discourse on a government that goes beyond race and religion.
The MCA’s Chiew Lian Keng said the party should rejoin the BN administration if it wants to remain relevant as a political party.
“Staying in BN without holding any portfolio or govt post, acting like a ruling party would further reduce the role of MCA. Rakyat has no reason to continue their support if a political party do not play a relatively important role in a ruling coalition,” the senator said in a text message to The Malay Mail Online.
But he shared Kong’s view that such a move should not be done solely to tackle racial issues.
“MCA should rejoin the government not only to push for Race Relation Act, but all acts that could benefit the people. We should not leave our BN component parties alone to serve the Chinese community,” he said.
But when asked whether he thought the MCA should rejoin the government, Ti said it is an “internal” matter that should not be dictated by outsiders, noting that Zaid is opposition-friendly.
“It’s an internal decision. That’s not for non-party members to dictate how and when we should join the government,” he said, adding that the party will decide when it should rejoin the government.