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IS MCA president Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat trying to limit the influence and power of his deputy, Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek? This is the question many people are asking.
Tongues started wagging when Ong left out Dr Chua from the lineup of new state liaison committee chiefs, making it the first time in the party's history where the deputy president does not have a state to oversee. Seemingly adding insult to injury, Ong then proceeded to appoint himself the party's liaison chief for Johor, a post previously held by Dr Chua. To the question of why he chose to lead the Johor state liaison committee, Ong said: "No reasons should be given. What I want to say is what serves the party best. That's all." Dr Chua was also denied the chance to head the party's disciplinary board, a role traditionally reserved for the deputy president. Instead, the board is now under the charge of party veteran Datuk Ng Cheng Keat. Also puzzling is Dr Chua's appointment as government policy monitoring bureau chief, since he is neither a member of parliament nor a senator. These developments have led to worry among many party members that the honeymoon between the two men has ended, even though the party elections were barely a month old. "It is so obvious that Ong is trying to choke Dr Chua," said a central committee (CC) member who supports Dr Chua. "He knows that Dr Chua will likely challenge him in three years time, so he is drawing first blood by boxing him up and denying him a chance to strengthen his support base. "It is understandable for the president to secure his position. "But to do it in such an obvious manner is bad for party morale and he is courting his own doom." Ong was very defensive when a reporter asked him on Tuesday whether his decision to seemingly limit Dr Chua's role within MCA would affect party unity. His reply was: "Everyone including yourself (the reporter) has the freedom to interpret things. "Political parties all over the world have to make certain decisions. I think you cannot predict your own future, right? So it is unfair to predict what my decision will result in just yet." But this has not stopped party elders from predicting that Ong's decision would return to haunt him. "Both Ong and Dr Chua are 'tigers'. What the president is trying to do is cage his deputy," said a former vice-president. "However he must remember that a majority of the party members voted for Dr Chua because they felt he was unfairly sabotaged by the previous leadership (referring to his sex scandal) because they felt threatened by his growing popularity. "What will happen now is people will see that Ong is trying to do the same, albeit in a more open manner. "His reputation as an honourable leader might be affected, swaying many to sympathise with Dr Chua. "All Ong needs to do is slip up and immediately the party will be flocking to Dr Chua." However, one party insider believes that Ong's move is an attempt to keep the peace among the factions in the party. "Don't forget that the former president's brother Datuk Seri Ong Ka Chuan also contested for the deputy's post but lost. "But Ka Chuan and his supporters really threw their support behind Tee Keat. Whether he (Tee Keat) acknowledges it or not, without Ka Chuan, he would not have been able to win the presidency. "So to stay as neutral as possible, Tee Keat appointed both Ka Chuan and Dr Chua as bureau chiefs (the former was made party history and documentation bureau chief) and both were also not made chiefs of any state. Vice-president Datuk Kong Cho Ha has replaced Ka Chuan as Perak MCA chief. Pro-Tee Keat CC members insist that the decisions were made in the best interest of the party, without any personal agenda. "Yes, a lot of things were not done according to tradition, but they are in line with the party constitution. "The MCA constitution merely states that the president has the power to appoint anyone he sees fit to fill the roles of state liaison chiefs. "It does not state that a deputy must be made this or that," one of them said. "As for the disciplinary board, well I think Dr Chua, with all his personal baggage is hardly a suitable candidate to judge the proper and acceptable conduct of other party members. Discipline, after all, is a moral issue." - nst
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Chinese society already used to the problems in MCA, they take care of themselves more than to take care of Chinese society. They have plenty of sex maniac, corrupted people and incapable politician, right top from OTK to the bottom.
I just say sorry for MCA, you are irrelevant now!!!