Ong vs Chua

ARCHIVES 2009

By admin-s On Sep 14, 2009

(The Nut Graph) THERE are two heavyweights currently in the MCA ring. But what do party president Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat and his sacked deputy Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek represent? And what consequence will the fight between the both of them have?

After all, the split in the party boils down to plain rivalry between two equally strong-headed individuals. And this would not be the first time MCA leaders are bitterly fighting each other. Additionally, with the MCA's star waning ever since the 2008 general election, what will it mean if one or the other comes out tops in the MCA ring?

Leadership styles

Despite both Chua and Ong being strong-willed, dominant and outspoken, Prof Dr Chin Yew Sin, president of the Oriental Strategy Research Centre, describes Chua's leadership style as "accommodating" whereas Ong is "uncompromising".

Ong is not known to be the sort of politician who panders to those hoping to use his ministerial powers for business or personal benefit. He is less prone to "giving or saving face", an important ethos in Chinese culture.

As such, some in the commercial sector feel that Ong's style has alienated traditional business forces.

Ong Ka Ting

On the other hand, some see him as a Chinese Malaysian leader who is finally able to stand up to Umno. Such feelings of being second-fiddle to Umno were unleashed by outgoing MCA president Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting at the 2008 party annual general meeting, where he said power-sharing in the BN was mere lip service.

That leaves Chua as someone more amenable, from Umno's point of view, at least. That he works well with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and deputy premier Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin is an open secret given his days in the Johor state government when Muhyiddin was menteri besar. And Najib appointed him BN chief coordinator for the Pakatan Rakyat (PR)-controlled states soon after Chua said he was being courted by PR, and following his marginalisation within MCA.

On Chua's side

But Chua rebuffs accusations that he is an Umno puppet. "If I am close to Muhyiddin and Najib, it's because they are friends. Can I not have my own friends? These are lies created by Ong to make me look bad," he tells The Nut Graph in a phone interview.

He also says he did not expect his appointment as BN chief coordinator to quieten Ong's attempts to oust him. "On the contrary, it hastened my expulsion because Ong feels threatened."

Asked again about joining PR, he said: "I will never leave the party. I am in for a fight".

Indeed, while there may be a shift in preference towards multiracial politics among the younger, Western-educated and urban voters, Chua does not believe the time for mixed race politics has come. In an interview with The Nut Graph in May 2009, he said race-based parties would be here to stay for as long as there are Malay privileges.

Put all of Chua's statements on his personal morals and political beliefs in context and it's easy to see why he insists on fighting Ong rather than join PR.

Chua is a BN loyalist. He believes in the practical reality, even necessity, of race-based parties. He feels he has already paid his dues over his sexual indiscretion, caught on video and then distributed by enemies he says, by admitting guilt and immediately resigning from all party and government posts.

Standing up to Umno

The MCA is struggling to
reassert itself

"Whatever MCA says in the cabinet, it is considered the view of the Chinese [Malaysian] community," says Chin. But with the current crisis, because both Ong and Chua are equally strong party personalities, Chin believes that the party's strength is already halved no matter who emerges as victor.

"How will a weakened MCA represent Chinese [Malaysian] interests in the government? Umno cannot respect MCA if it is not strong," Chin tells The Nut Graph over the phone.

Chin may have a point. Since the 2008 general election, the MCA, second largest component party in the Barisan Nasional (BN), has been struggling to reassert itself. Umno has also been quick to blame MCA over the loss of Chinese Malaysian votes for the BN. At the same time, there is what many believe to be "creeping Islamisation" going hand in glove with strident calls of "Bangkit Melayu".