KUALA LUMPUR, March 4 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek quit as MCA deputy president on Thursday and asked for fresh party elections within one month to resolve the party crisis.
Announcing his decision at a packed news conference at the party headquarters here he said seven other elected central committee (CC) members had also resigned.
With 13 others having submitted letters to step down before this, it means that 21 or a two-third majority of the 31 elected CC members had quit to enable a fresh round of polls to be held.
Asked whether he had informed party president Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat of his move, Dr Chua said he had not.
He also asked that the party's annual general meeting, scheduled for this weekend, be postponed.
"This resignation is to fulfil my promise at the extraordinary general meeting last year where I voiced the view that we may need fresh elections to overcome the upheaval in the party.
"What's important is the party and not the leaders or their self-interests," he said.
Chua said that from January until yesterday he had received resignation letters from seven elected CC members.
They were vice-president Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha, who is Housing and Local Government Minister, Datuk Gan Tian Loo, Dr Por Choo Chor, Datuk Seri Tan Chai Ho, Tee Siew Keong, Datuk Chong Itt Chiew and Loh Seng Kok.
Dr Chua said they would not be attending the CC meeting tomorrow planned in advance of Sunday's AGM and tomorrow's party anniversary celebration as well as the Youth and Wanita meetings.
"We are not going to attend because we have resigned. I call on all the elected CC members to be awar of their responsibilities and rights.
"I said that no leader is more important than the party. That's why I rejected the offer to be chairman of the Star newspaper," he said.
Asked if he will recontest the deputy presidency post or go for another position in the fresh elections, he said he would decide after the party had decided on the nomination and polling dates.
Dr Chua said he had contacted party secretary-general Datuk Wong Foon Meng but the latter was not in his office today.
He said that under clause 41 of the party constitution, the new polls must be held within a month of the 21 elected CC members's resignations.
The 13 who submitted letters of resignation last month included vice-president Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai who is Health Minister.
Dr Chua's move is the latest twist in the MCA leadership tussle which hit the party August last year when he was sacked for tarnishing its image because of the sex video.
He was later reinstated as a party member by an extraordinary general meeting which also passed a vote of no confidence in the party president.
Subsequently, he was reinstated as deputy president by the Registrar of Societies, which in turn relegated Liow, who had filled the deputy president's post, back to vice-president.
Dr Chua buried the hatchet with Ong to forge a "greater party unity" plan but continued to face resistance from Liow and his supporters, including Youth chief Datuk Dr Wee Ka Siong and Wanita head Datin Paduka Chew Mee Fun, who continued to push for fresh polls.
Today was the second time that the Johor veteran politician and former health minister had vacated his party post.
On Jan 2, 2008, he quit his Cabinet post and as MCA vice-president after admitting that he was the man in a widely circulated sex video.
Despite that, Dr Chua, 62, remained popular by beating three others, including former secretary-general Datuk Seri Ong Ka Chuan, for the party's second top post.
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