‘Embattled MCA boss hiding behind MIC’s GAS’
By RK Anand, Free Malaysia Today
UPDATED KUALA LUMPUR: A top level MIC leader has accused MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek of using the Gerakan Anti-Samy Vellu (GAS) movement as a “smokescreen” for his woes in the party.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, he told FMT that Chua was using the MCA-owned English daily The Star to blow up the GAS issue, giving much prominence to its leaders such as V Mugilan.
“MCA is weak and becoming irrelevant after it underwent a leadership crisis and it hopes to create a similar situation in MIC. Talk is that Chua is facing problems, and a mutiny is brewing.
“To make matters worse, his son’s appointment to the cabinet has also set tongues wagging. Apparently, this has not gone down well with some MCA leaders,” he said.
After taking over MCA’s leadership reins, Chua repeatedly said that he would not accept a senator post or cabinet appointment as he wanted to concentrate on rebuilding the strife-torn party.
However, Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak caught many by surprise when he announced on Tuesday that Chua’s son Tee Yong, who is also Labis MP, has been appointed as a deputy minister.
‘Samy and gang furious’
Meanwhile, the MIC leader said party president S Samy Vellu and those aligned to him were furious with Chua and The Star for publishing the “negative reports”.
“Even the GAS rally on Sunday was portrayed as a major event when all other news organisations, including the more critical online media, stopped short of calling it a failure.
“But The Star devoted several pages, and hiked the figure to 5,000 when the others reported that only 3,000 or so had turned up for the event,” he added.
The MIC leader claimed that MCA and The Star were also being used by “certain individuals” to condemn Samy Vellu and pressure him to step down.
He said it was surprising that the daily was publishing negative news about another Barisan Nasional component party.
“The newspaper has always been supportive of MIC but all of a sudden, we see the newspaper going for the kill,” he said.
