BN can forget Selangor, says ex-MCA chief Ling

Former MCA president Dr Ling Liong Sik has predicted that BN will not be able to recapture Selangor in the  next general election due to the clean image of Pakatan Rakyat leaders.

Aside from PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim, both Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim and Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng have never been involved in corruption and power abuse, which has helped them in building a good image, said Ling.

“Generally, the Chinese are not favourable to BN, but in Perak there is no other choice. In Johor, (BN) may lose some support but not to the extent of losing (the state government).

“This general election is very hard for BN, very hard. I think BN can still win because the government has been spending money under different names. This has never happened before,” he said in an exclusive interview with Chinese newspaper Sin Chew Daily.

Ling's prediction is contrary to that of Umno publicity chief Ahmad Maslan, who declared last week that BN will not only regain its two-thirds majority in Parliament, but also Selangor, Kedah and Kelantan.

Having led the Chinese party for 17 years (1986-2003), Ling - the longest-serving MCA president - opined that the benchmark for BN to declare a victory is to regain the two-thirds majority.

In contrast to former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Ling has seldom commented on politics and party affairs since quitting politics in 2003.

Asked his views on current MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek (right), Ling described him as a smart and outspoken leader but one who is unfortunately tainted by his sex DVD scandal.

“I hope the Chinese can give positive response to Chua’s efforts, but he has the DVD...,” he was quoted as saying.

‘Not right to says Ong is an enemy’

On Chua’s predecessor Ong Tee Keat, who had initiated investigations into the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal which had led to Ling being charged with cheating the cabinet, he expressed reservations.
Asked whether Ong is still his friend, Ling paused before replying: “I don’t know. It is not right to say he is an enemy, maybe he wants to be your friend?

“I don’t have his phone number. I am also sure that he does not have mine. But not having the phone number does not mean we are not friends. Old friends don’t need to see each other frequently, but when you are in trouble, they will know.”

In March, the prosecution  successfully established a prima facie case against Ling, the former transport minister, on charges of cheating the government in 2002 on the PKFZ project.

The trial will resume from June 18-22, July 2-5, 10-13 and 16-18.

Sharing his thoughts on the bigger picture of Malaysian politics, Ling agreed that a two-party system is good for Malaysia, but said this must come with a competent opposition.

“It depends on the quality of the opposition. If they are terrible, then a two-party system would be hard to implement. If they are good... like Penang...

“In fact, DAP is doing a good job, but there was this dispute between party chairperson Karpal Singh and Penang Deputy Chief Minister II P Ramasamy,” he said.