Writing on the wall for Tee Keat, MCA
(The Malaysian Insider) – KUALA LUMPUR: In the corridors of power in Putrajaya, the thinking among the senior Umno leadership is leaning towards the conclusion that Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat is finished politically.
Despite public proclamations of support, The Malaysian Insider understands the top Umno leadership is of the opinion Ong is no longer of any use to Umno or Barisan Nasional (BN).
It is also understood that while many in Umno feel Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek is a much more capable leader, he does not provide a long term solution to the political crisis in MCA and BN.
As Ong and Dr Chua continue to slug it out for control of MCA, it has also become apparent that the Chinese community is viewing the tussle with indifference or, at most, as a sideshow.
The beleaguered Ong is currently under pressure from two fronts, largely due to his own doing.
By sacking Dr Chua, he has galvanised a disparate group of veteran and current leaders behind his chief rival.
Supporters of Dr Chua include those from rival camps associated with former presidents Tun Dr Ling Liong Sik and Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting.
Ong’s supporters have also helped paint their leader into a corner, by touting him to party grassroots as the only man capable of standing up to Umno.
In MCA, the second biggest party in BN, Umno is being portrayed by Ong’s supporters as a bully, while Ong is being portrayed as the great hero standing up for the Chinese community.
Such a message is being delivered through blogs linked to Ong and by his supporters trying to convince party members to back him.
But his campaign has been hit by heavy blows to his own credibility and carefully-crafted image of being a lone reformer.
The accusation by Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing, the BN backbenchers chief who remains close to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, that Ong took a RM10 million cash donation from him last year has dominated the Chinese-language newspapers.
Ong’s admission that he took free rides on private jets belonging to Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) contractor Kuala Dimensi Sdn Bhd (KDSB), a company controlled by Tiong, have also suggested impropriety on his part.
The MCA president’s attempt to push himself as the man who is cleaning up PKFZ is also not cutting no ice with Najib and those in Umno.
This is because PKFZ continues to be a major embarrassment for the BN administration, and the exposure so far is not likely to gain the ruling coalition any extra votes.
