TIPS....The
latest is the attempt by MCA's Deputy President Liow Tiong Lai (right) to reach
out to Chinese voters by offering health tips for the Chinese New Year season.
By : KOON YEW YIN
AS THE CURTAIN comes down on
the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) as a force in Malaysian politics,
Malaysians are being treated to demonstrations of desperate behavior by the MCA
top brass to show that they are still relevant.
No doubt the book launch
speech by the Health Minister has been widely reported in the mainstream media.
His backroom boys will
probably be flattering the minister about how clever he is in referring to the
lucky number of 8888 and its association with wealth and health in reaching out
to the Chinese electorate.
But will it work on the
Chinese electorate? What Chinese voters want? Will Chinese and Malaysian voters
be easily swayed by such gimmicks which can be expected to intensify as we get
closer to the elections?
My view is that it will not.
In fact, even MCA insiders
realise that the Chinese electorate is a more sophisticated and discerning one.
MCA veteran Woon See Chin, a former deputy education minister, for example, has
admitted that generous handouts such as the RM200 smart phone rebate and RM500
1Malaysia People's Bantuan would not help win back the support of disenchanted
young Chinese voters.
His observation that
"Chinese youth are more independent" and that "they don't rely
on any political parties; some of them have never received any financial aid
from the government", is true not only for Chinese youth but also for the
majority of the Chinese and Indian voting population.
What will the Chinese (and
other Malaysian) voters be influenced by? Chinese voters want change.
They want a party that can
stand up to Umno and its almost 60 years of self-serving politics of racism,
cronyism and opportunism that have damaged our economy, ruined our educational
system and made the future darker for all Malaysians, especially for
non-Malays.
Pearls before swine
How to change our system? I
have been told that guidance to MCA is akin to casting pearls before swine and
also that the leopard will never change its spots. Nevertheless I would like to
offer some advice to the MCA leaders and its supporters for the coming
elections.
According to feedback
obtained from the Chinese community and through my participation in political
ceramah and interaction with the man in the street, MCA and Gerakan will be
wiped out as political parties in the elections. This is because few if any of
its candidates will be able to win enough votes to be elected even in Umno
dominated constituencies.
This worst case scenario is
based on two important considerations:
The Chinese view that Umno
cannot and will not change its hard line ketuanan Melayu and ketuanan Islam
ideology and policies which have scarred our nation and ruined the future of
most Chinese youth.
The general view that MCA
will never be allowed by Umno to be anything but a toady and boot-licking
party.
One option
Faced with an impending
disastrous performance in the election which could mark the end of the party,
there is only one option that is available for the party and its members to
pursue between now and the elections.
This option is that MCA
leaders and members should not support BN. Of course, it is too late for the
party as a whole to take action to and make the momentous decision to get out
of the BN coalition.
This historic decision
should be left to another time. NONEBut in the meantime, individual leaders and
members can signal their disapproval with the way that Umno has been running
and ruining the country and their disgust with the way in which it has treated
MCA as a lap dog.
This can be done by
abstaining from taking part in the elections and by not supporting BN during
the elections. Such a decision may be difficult for the likes of the top MCA
leaders and central committee members who have profited from lucrative
contracts, commissions, datukships and tan sri-ships.
But for the party's
middle-level leadership, this is the right time to shift their allegiance to
the opposition coalition and for them to work to ensure a Pakatan victory.
Kicked around
Their contribution to
ousting Umno from power can come in many ways such as urging constituency
members not to vote blindly for BN candidates; secretly providing support to
opposition candidates; alerting the NGOs monitoring the elections of the BN's
dirty tricks and likely abuses; dragging their feet on being co-opted as a BN
election workers; etc.
Unlike the party's leaders
who have accumulated so much wealth by being cronies of Umno, the middle level
and grassroots leadership have gotten crumbs whilst being kicked around. Only
by working for change will they be able to win back the respect of the Chinese
community and convince their friends and children that they have not sold out
the Chinese community by being members of MCA.
The coming election provides
the last chance for MCA leaders and members to change the course of history -
positively.
I and millions of Malaysians
urge them to make a stand for change by working to ensure that the BN loses,
for the opposition to take over Putrajaya.
(NOTE : Koon Yew Yin, a
retired chartered engineer, is a philanthropist)
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