MCA president to sit out May 5 election
(Straits Times) – MALAYSIAN Chinese Association president Chua Soi Lek has announced he is not a candidate in this general election, the first time that a sitting MCA president has opted out from contesting national polls.
“I will be leading the charge in the election campaign running up to the polls but will not be offering myself as a candidate,” he said in a statement yesterday.
This is part of a “renewal process” to groom new leaders, he said.
The MCA is the second-largest party in Prime Minister Najib Razak’s Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, after Umno.
The decision to avoid the contest suggests pressure on Datuk Seri Chua from the opposition, which is gaining in the contest for the Chinese vote, as well as forces within his own coalition.
It also comes among widespread speculation on who will stand and who will be dropped as Malaysia heads into its most keenly contested election in years.
As PM Najib’s BN fights to retain power, it would not want to field anyone not considered a “winnable candidate”.
Chinese support for the MCA has waned since 2008, and Dr Chua previously warned that the trend could lead to the community having no representation in a future BN government.
The status and electability of Dr Chua, 66, has been a topic of speculation. In 2008, a secretly filmed video was leaked showing him having extramarital sex. He resigned from all ministerial and party posts, and did not contest the 2008 general election.
He came back to helm the MCA in 2010, following a fierce internal power struggle after the party performed poorly in the 2008 elections.
Dr Chua is now busy trying to quell dissent among MCA grassroots members over its diminished share of seats among BN component parties.
At a press conference yesterday, he urged members to accept the “loan” of seats to allies, in the spirit of ensuring victory and harmony for the BN.
