A milestone: Dr Wee shaking hands with members at MCA’s 74th anniversary celebration in Kuala Lumpur. — CHAN TAK KONG/The Star
KUALA LUMPUR: While not involved in government policy-making, MCA can still play a meaningful role, says party president Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong.
He said as a coalition government member with no role in the Cabinet, MCA was not restricted by any government or official positions.
“MCA MPs can speak freely as government backbenchers.
“We will certainly support and defend any good policies by the government.
“Even when we are not in the Cabinet, we have successfully obtained RM40mil management allocation for Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology to ensure this institution of higher education can continue to provide affordable, high-quality higher education to students of all races.
“At the same time, we are also monitoring the Opposition.
“When the Opposition attempted to stir up racial and religious issues to gain political mileage, we will stand up against them to ensure the rights and freedom of all racial groups are not violated,” he added.
Dr Wee pointed out that MCA’s 74th party anniversary theme was “Perseverance in Strength” and this could serve as their guide in the current political landscape.
He added that they had to face the political reality of having only two MPs and just a handful of state assemblymen in Johor, Melaka and Perak.
“MCA is in a challenging situation with limited negotiation power to determine the political direction of our country.
“We must face and change this reality and find the strength to bounce back,” he said during his speech at the anniversary event.
Meanwhile, Dr Wee said seat allocations for the impending six state elections would be more complicated because the party would be working with parties from Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Harapan.
“Political negotiations are always based on strength in numbers, which determines our negotiation power,” he said.
Dr Wee said MCA would have three issues to consider.
Firstly, he said MCA should fight for the right to contest its traditional seats in the state polls.
“However, this does not take into consideration our current condition and strength or the political reality we are in.
“If every party in the unity government insists on contesting their traditional seats, then the unity government will be meaningless and opponents will get the last laugh,” he said.
Secondly, he said some members reckoned that the party should fight for a minimum number of seats to contest.
However, he said this still involved many uncertainties, including whether the unity government would see it fit to ensure each political party is allocated a certain number of seats.
“MCA has no elected representatives in these six states and other political parties won the seats.
“Are they willing to let MCA contest for these seats?
“We will do our best but based on the current political situation, only some parties can be confident of victory.
“We still need support from other Barisan or Pakatan component parties.
“Are our grassroots mentally prepared for this change?” he said.
Thirdly, Dr Wee said some members believed that MCA should focus on party reformation instead and not contest in the state polls and campaign for Barisan component parties.
“This will allow us to assess the strength of the unity government formed by Barisan and Pakatan.
“But if MCA does not participate in the elections, many grassroots members will be unhappy and state and division leaders – including the party president – will eventually become scapegoats and blamed for not fighting for the opportunity to contest,” he added.
“Most importantly, MCA has to gain more negotiating power and become more influential in this political situation.
“We must work to be more robust to become a force to be reckoned with – all these start with party reform which must be achieved,” he said.
Meanwhile, MCA secretary-general Datuk Chong Sin Woon said organisation restructuring was one of the crucial changes needed.
“Within MCA’s massive organisation, it is time for us to undergo a complete overhaul.
“There is a need to sever the encumbering and bloated aspects of the organisation to become leaner and more flexible, to approach and serve the public more effectively.
“Only by transforming every party member into elite fighters shall MCA be reckoned with on the battlefield,” he said.
