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| Opinion | |
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Wednesday, 02 September 2009 17:00
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| One EGM, Two Agendas | | Print | |
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Just like most of the other political parties in Malaysia, the MCA doesn’t normally have many major internal issues to deal with. The last big leadership dispute was 24 years ago and that needed the skills of an Umno man, the late Tun Ghafar Baba, to resolve.
The party now has to deal with another leadership crisis, this time also involving the highest echelon. Well, one of them has been sacked. The question many are asking is that even if the party had adhered to all its regulations in sacking deputy president Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek, why do it now when the indiscretion he was involved in became public knowledge in late 2007? To make it all the more difficult, Chua contested for the No. 2 post last October and won against three others, including one who was a federal minister then. Was his sacking a reactive decision to his election? It certainly looks like it. But in so doing it appears that the MCA has disregarded the decision of the majority – delegates attending its annual assembly. Party president Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat has now directed that an EGM be held next month to decide only on one issue and that is to consider a vote of confidence in him and the leadership. This, Ong believes, would settle the “impasse” once and for all. This call by him is also interpreted as a preemptive move against Chua. But there are two other ways for an EGM to be convened – a written request by one-third of the central committee or by one-third of the general assembly. If Chua can rope in enough delegates, the MCA faces the possibility of two EGMs. The party leadership however can always decide to ignore a different petition for an EGM but do this and the case may go to court, like the dispute in the mid-80s. It is not a situation any party would want to be in. The Barisan Nasional leadership too wouldn’t want this problem to drag on, not while it’s trying to regain the confidence of the people as it moves towards the 13th general election in less than four years time. Former MCA president Lee Kim Sai has suggested a two-pronged EGM to deal with two issues – the position of Ong as party leader and also the sacking of Chua. That sounds like the most sensible way out. |