Muhyiddin was ‘happy to be sacked’, says MCA man
(FMT) – Former MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek says Muhyiddin Yassin and Najib Razak were never close despite their time together in Umno’s top leadership.
In fact, Chua said, Muhyiddin had told him that he was “happy to be sacked” in 2015 as Najib’s deputy in the Cabinet as he would no longer need to bear Najib’s “political baggage”.
“He told me he could not be a yes-man as the Umno deputy president and deputy prime minister at that time when 1MDB and the RM2.6 billion donation issues were not being addressed by Najib,” he said in his biography, “Like Me or Hate Me: Rising From The Political Ashes”.
Muhyiddin, who was deputy prime minister from 2009 until 2015 under Najib’s Barisan Nasional administration, was also Umno deputy president.
He was sacked from Umno in 2016 for breaching party discipline after openly criticising Najib over 1MDB. This came about a year after he was dropped from government in a Cabinet reshuffle which saw Ahmad Zahid Hamidi replacing him as deputy prime minister.
Chua, who served as an exco member under Muhyiddin during the latter’s time as Johor menteri besar in 1990, said Muhyiddin had always stood firm on his principles despite facing obstacles throughout his political career.
He said it was Muhyiddin who had started the practice of getting his state exco members to visit the state and parliamentary constituencies in Johor every year.
“The visits provided us with a chance to witness the development on the ground and see the problems faced by the people,” he said, adding that the practice was continued by Ghani Othman who took over as menteri besar in 1995.
Chua also credited Muhyiddin with fostering good relations with Singapore during his time as state chief, recalling how leaders from both sides would visit each other during Hari Raya and Chinese New Year.
“Singapore also became one of our major foreign investors in the state, along with Japan, South Korea and the US.”
He spoke highly of Ghani as well, saying he had gotten along well with Muhyiddin and was still in touch with Chua himself.
In his book, Chua also recalled his impressions of Najib and Najib’s successor Abdullah Badawi whom he worked with during his time as health minister, as well as MCA leaders Dr Ling Liong Sik and Ong Ka Ting.
Abdullah Badawi
“He made people feel quickly at ease in his presence as he was always courteous and smiling. Sadly, he had a habit of being late to meetings and functions, and his speeches were always dull, spoken in monotone and lacking in substance. Pak Lah would let people continue talking in meetings even though they were speaking out of topic.
“I understand that he suffered from a medical condition that caused him to fall asleep easily, that is sleep apnea. This, along with a short attention span, caused him to be rather embarrassing as he was often the butt of jokes by opposition members and the public.”
Najib Razak
“Unlike Pak Lah, Najib was sterner, yet he was polite to his guests and audiences. He was impressive in chairing meetings and could summarise complex issues. He would ask questions during discussions and was quick to understand the speaker’s point of view.
“Najib also controlled his temper well and had a good memory. I only saw him lose his temper during an economic council meeting on remuneration for civil servants. He blushed and his ears were red when he lost his temper.”
Dr Ling Liong Sik
“He was a soft-spoken man who hardly showed any anger in public. His poor command of Mandarin did not deter him from working hard for the community. No one in MCA can deny that Ling did much for Chinese primary and tertiary education, such as establishing Utar and TAR University College.
“He was also able to establish grassroots support because of his whiskey-drinking habit that broke the ice with the people. I also noticed that he cultivated a network of friends in the business community, when MCA was at the peak of its power and influence.
“It was through Ling that MCA was put on strong financial footing. He also insisted that there should be no interference with The Star, the MCA-owned newspaper.”
Ong Ka Ting
“He will always be regarded by MCA members as Umno’s blue-eyed boy who avoided confrontation with Umno on major issues. The people see Ong and MCA as having no political convictions.
“DAP used his picture with Hishammuddin Hussein, who courted controversy with his keris brandishing, as a tool in the 2008 general election as a reminder to Chinese voters that Ong did not do anything to confront Hishammuddin.
“Besides that, Ong failed to bring up the interests of the Chinese community such as Chinese primary schools and new villages to Cabinet discussions. Under his leadership, MCA operated like an NGO where leaders cautioned that they must maintain good relations with Umno ministers.”
