By Khoo Kay Peng
Prime Minister Najib Razak will not be attending the disputed MCA annual general meeting this Sunday. Najib's absence is going to be read as a lost of support for incumbent MCA President Ong Tee Keat.
The presence of UMNO President to launch the annual general assembly of Barisan component parties is the clearest sign of UMNO's superiority over other parties. Previous presidents who did not enjoy the support of UMNO president/prime minister were quickly removed from the party.
Dr Lim Chong Eu was strong enough to defeat Tan Cheng Lock for the MCA presidency but his dispute with UMNO president Tunku Abdul Rahman over seats allocation was quickly manipulated by his party leaders to push him out of MCA.
Sadly, history is going to repeat itself again here. Ong is not expected to be able to launch a strong challenge to defend his post if the delegates want a closer relationship with UMNO. It is customary for parties in the coalition to compete for the attention and goodwill of UMNO.
However, it is unlikely for Ong to follow the footsteps of Dr Lim in forming an opposition party, the United Democratic Party (a backbone for the formation of Parti Gerakan) after a two-year hiatus from politics.
In an equal partnership, there should have been a rotating coalition chairmanship. No other leader from a non-UMNO party has ever led Barisan.
Hence, a leadership change in MCA will not help the party to resolve its own political crisis or to recapture the support of Chinese community.
MCA's main problem is the prevailing ugly elitist and discriminative politics in Malaysia. This brand of elitist politics is merely manipulating and abusing race and religion to benefit their own kind.
MCA's decline is irreversible and imminent if UMNO is allowed to perpetuate its brand of elitist politics unchecked and unchallenged.
UMNO is not going to and cannot leave its "ketuanan Melayu" (Malay supremacy) politics behind. UMNO's survival depends on its ability to convince the Malays that they are the princes of the land and the party's its protector.
Post-Mahathir, its leadership is also trying to mend its rift and rebuild its alliance with the monarch, another useful symbol for Malay supremacy.
Events in the last months suggested that UMNO may have unleashed all possibilities to strengthen its ethnoreligious credentials hoping to shore up its Malay support base. It hopes to unite the Malay under the pretence to protect the Malay special status, its symbol of supremacy - the monarchy, Islam as an exclusive religion and the sacred Malay social status in Malaysia.
However, the more UMNO pushes its Malay-Islam agenda the more doubts it is going to cast on Najib's 1Malaysia agenda. Compared to Vision 2020, Mahathir was smart enough to create a time frame for equality which was way beyond his tenure so that Malaysians of all races remain hopeful as long as we have not touched the finishing line.
1Malaysia to the skeptics is a mere slogan. The cynics see it as a ploy. The pragmatists know that it will not and cannot be achieved. The moment there is equality for all it marks an end for UMNO.
Racial equality and the realisation of a truly Bangsa Malaysia is an end game for UMNO. UMNO becomes irrelevant once it is no longer needed to defend Malay supremacy which is a disguise of its elitist interests. Najib and all UMNO leaders would definitely want UMNO to remain for the next 500 years.
Hence, Perkasa was expedited. Perkasa will say and do whatever UMNO cannot or would not say in order not to lose its 1Malaysia mask.
From Dr Mahathir to Najib, the believers of Vision 2020 and 1Malaysia should know by now that they have been conned.
MCA should wake up from its slumber. It is time for its leadership to sober up. MCA under the leadership of Ong, Chua or Liow is not going to help save the party if it wants to continue to be 'henpecked' by UMNO.
My advice to Ong is to issue a full disclosure on what has happened to the PKFZ investigation. His days as the MCA president may be numbered but the people will remember him as a fallen angel if he can walk his talk on his intention to make those who were responsible for the fiasco be brought to face justice.
My previous articles in The Star supporting his intention to conduct a thorough investigation on PKFZ had led to people speculating that I had joined his team of advisers. I had hoped that it was true because I would have advised him to stand up against those who had colluded to sweep this scandal under the carpet and to demand for an equal partnership in Barisan.
MCA leadership has proven that it is part of the greedy and dangerous elitist politics and not fighting to end it.
What good can it do if it can't contribute to end racism, corruption, mismanagement and power arrogance?
Prime Minister Najib Razak will not be attending the disputed MCA annual general meeting this Sunday. Najib's absence is going to be read as a lost of support for incumbent MCA President Ong Tee Keat.
The presence of UMNO President to launch the annual general assembly of Barisan component parties is the clearest sign of UMNO's superiority over other parties. Previous presidents who did not enjoy the support of UMNO president/prime minister were quickly removed from the party.
Dr Lim Chong Eu was strong enough to defeat Tan Cheng Lock for the MCA presidency but his dispute with UMNO president Tunku Abdul Rahman over seats allocation was quickly manipulated by his party leaders to push him out of MCA.
Sadly, history is going to repeat itself again here. Ong is not expected to be able to launch a strong challenge to defend his post if the delegates want a closer relationship with UMNO. It is customary for parties in the coalition to compete for the attention and goodwill of UMNO.
However, it is unlikely for Ong to follow the footsteps of Dr Lim in forming an opposition party, the United Democratic Party (a backbone for the formation of Parti Gerakan) after a two-year hiatus from politics.
In an equal partnership, there should have been a rotating coalition chairmanship. No other leader from a non-UMNO party has ever led Barisan.
Hence, a leadership change in MCA will not help the party to resolve its own political crisis or to recapture the support of Chinese community.
MCA's main problem is the prevailing ugly elitist and discriminative politics in Malaysia. This brand of elitist politics is merely manipulating and abusing race and religion to benefit their own kind.
MCA's decline is irreversible and imminent if UMNO is allowed to perpetuate its brand of elitist politics unchecked and unchallenged.
UMNO is not going to and cannot leave its "ketuanan Melayu" (Malay supremacy) politics behind. UMNO's survival depends on its ability to convince the Malays that they are the princes of the land and the party's its protector.
Post-Mahathir, its leadership is also trying to mend its rift and rebuild its alliance with the monarch, another useful symbol for Malay supremacy.
Events in the last months suggested that UMNO may have unleashed all possibilities to strengthen its ethnoreligious credentials hoping to shore up its Malay support base. It hopes to unite the Malay under the pretence to protect the Malay special status, its symbol of supremacy - the monarchy, Islam as an exclusive religion and the sacred Malay social status in Malaysia.
However, the more UMNO pushes its Malay-Islam agenda the more doubts it is going to cast on Najib's 1Malaysia agenda. Compared to Vision 2020, Mahathir was smart enough to create a time frame for equality which was way beyond his tenure so that Malaysians of all races remain hopeful as long as we have not touched the finishing line.
1Malaysia to the skeptics is a mere slogan. The cynics see it as a ploy. The pragmatists know that it will not and cannot be achieved. The moment there is equality for all it marks an end for UMNO.
Racial equality and the realisation of a truly Bangsa Malaysia is an end game for UMNO. UMNO becomes irrelevant once it is no longer needed to defend Malay supremacy which is a disguise of its elitist interests. Najib and all UMNO leaders would definitely want UMNO to remain for the next 500 years.
Hence, Perkasa was expedited. Perkasa will say and do whatever UMNO cannot or would not say in order not to lose its 1Malaysia mask.
From Dr Mahathir to Najib, the believers of Vision 2020 and 1Malaysia should know by now that they have been conned.
MCA should wake up from its slumber. It is time for its leadership to sober up. MCA under the leadership of Ong, Chua or Liow is not going to help save the party if it wants to continue to be 'henpecked' by UMNO.
My advice to Ong is to issue a full disclosure on what has happened to the PKFZ investigation. His days as the MCA president may be numbered but the people will remember him as a fallen angel if he can walk his talk on his intention to make those who were responsible for the fiasco be brought to face justice.
My previous articles in The Star supporting his intention to conduct a thorough investigation on PKFZ had led to people speculating that I had joined his team of advisers. I had hoped that it was true because I would have advised him to stand up against those who had colluded to sweep this scandal under the carpet and to demand for an equal partnership in Barisan.
MCA leadership has proven that it is part of the greedy and dangerous elitist politics and not fighting to end it.
What good can it do if it can't contribute to end racism, corruption, mismanagement and power arrogance?
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