May 01, 2011
KUALA LUMPUR, May 1 - Lim Guan Eng slammed political foe MCA and its president today for what the DAP leader labelled a reckless and desperate gamble to ensure its survival by asking Chinese Malaysians for support to ensure a place in a Barisan Nasional (BN) government.
The Penang chief minister said if the MCA won in the coming general elections, they will not be able to attribute it to support from the Chinese community they are supposed to represent, but the voters’ fear of losing their voice in government.
“What is the point then of electing wakil rakyats [elected representatives] who neither listen to the people nor do the people’s work but will only listen to Umno and do Umno’s dirty work of corruption and abuse of power?” Lim asked in a statement today.
“What hope is there for Malaysians, if BN, Umno and MCA are allowed to continue to steal our children’s future?” he added.
The MCA, led by its president, Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek, had pledged to stay out of government if it failed to improve its flagging support among Chinese voters in the 13th general election, expected now to be called anytime from August to early next year. Dr Chua and his men had warned the Chinese that they stood to lose if MCA had no seat at the government table.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, who is also Umno chief, reminded the community yesterday to either support MCA or lose representation in a Barisan Nasional (BN) government. MCA won 15 out of the 40 federal seats and 31 out of 90 state seats in Election 2008. The DAP secretary-general said Dr Chua’s political gamble has opened the way for Umno’s top leaders to jump in and stir up racial tension by pitting Malays against Chinese and Malays against Malays, as signalled in Najib’s latest overture to PAS to rejoin the BN.
“Unfortunately this has also deepened racial polarisation by giving Umno the opportunity to show that they are ultra-Malay defenders by inviting PAS to join Umno in BN,” he said. The Islamist party is the DAP’s partner in the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) pact, together with PKR. Lim said the gesture was a betrayal of the PM’s own 1 Malaysia movement and indicated the set up of “a grand coalition of racist and extremist Malays”. The opposition lawmaker also challenged Dr Chua to prove his sincerity as and pull the Chinese party out of the BN if it loses again in the national polls.
“What is the point of just withdrawing from Cabinet when you do not withdraw from BN?” the Bagan MP taunted, reminded of Dr Chua’s statement that MCA will stick with the 13-party coalition even if it lost.
“Voters are voting against BN as this is the symbol and not MCA’s symbol when contesting in elections,” Lim said.
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