Friday, January 08, 2010

Chinese NGOs must remain apolitical

I was upset when I saw the headlines of this article : Lim Sue Goan - Chinese groups to replace MCA. The first thing that crossed my mind was - bad idea in the long run.

Indeed, some National Chinese NGO(s) harboured ambitions to go beyond their boundaries of being apolitical.

When UMNO leaders warned MCA that they have to solve the matter fast or UMNO will have to replace MCA to represent the Chinese, I doubt that the leaders were serious.

But some UMNO advisor(s), leader(s) and blogger(s) did suggest that UMNO should set up an UMNO Chinese Welfare Bureau (no joke) so that UMNO leaders do not have to depend on MCA to tap the Chinese community.

Lately, rumours are circulating and buzzing among the Chinese community that there is a strong possibility of MCA being replaced if the Party fails to solve their internal conflicts.

Not by UMNO but interestingly, by an NGO.

Of all the Associations and Guilds, the most suitable one to represent the Chinese naturally is Hua Zhong led by Tan Sri Pheng Yin Huah (click for news/info).

You see, when MMSP was pushed as a replacement for MIC, politicians and Indian community leaders were disappointed. The trust and respect which MIC gave to UMNO for so many decades were kicked aside just like that.

If we can recall, UMNO had several crisis.

When UMNO was declared illegal and had to register their Party once again, Barisan Nasional component parties especially MCA and MIC stayed strong with UMNO.

During the days when UMNO faced internal problems in phases involving Tengku Razaleigh, Dr Mahathir, Tun Musa Hitam, Anwar Ibrahim, Tun Ghafar Baba, and Abdullah Badawi, MCA and MIC did not take sides.

MCA and MIC did not go outside of the Barisan Nasional circle to approach Malay NGOs to form a political entity as a replacement of UMNO.

MCA and MIC never issued statements that say "if UMNO cannot settle their problems, we will need to find alternatives as replacement of UMNO".

Neither did MCA and MIC lure the Opposition to form a coalition which would have caused UMNO further troubles. Never. MCA and MIC stood with UMNO through thick and thin.

In fact, MCA issued a statement that we will sink or swim with UMNO after the March 2008 election. That sort of trust and respect to UMNO must be returned to MCA in the same manner.

I am not accusing UMNO of playing out MCA, just like how MIC was slapped by the recognition of MMSP as a "friend of BN".

But I am stressing the need for the principles and spirit of a united Barisan Nasional to be upheld. Trust and respect must be a two-way traffic, otherwise things won't work and the ship will sink.

That is of course for UMNO leaders to ponder. Suggestions will not come without ambitions or objectives.

Humbly, if I may ask :
  • will Hua Zhong perform well as a replacement of MCA ?

  • Is Tan Sri Pheng Yin Huah qualified to lead the Chinese community in politics ?

  • Will it be for the people or for "the business" ?

  • How well will Hua Zhong perform as a political entity - especially under Tan Sri Pheng Yin Huah ?

Junior I may seem judging from my age and I am a nobody compared to a man with a "Tan Sri" title. However, we must not rule out the opinion that if Hua Zhong enters the scene as a political party, it could be damaging and detrimental to both MCA and Hua Zhong in the long run.

If Hua Zhong fails as a political party, what will happen to this organization ? Will it sink or revert back to be a NGO ?

In the end, allow this "junior" to sound the warning bells, it might send the representatives of the Chinese community into oblivion with MCA sidelined and with Hua Zhong ruled irrelevant or incapable.

That could signal the end of Malaysian Chinese participation in the ruling coalition after decades of active politics.

Tan Sri Pheng must be clear where Hua Zhong should be heading to and what Hua Zhong's role should be in today's politics with a new and dynamic Chinese generation.

Remember. MCA is meant to be the dragon with the Associations and Guilds forming the backbone of the Party. The future of the Chinese community will be in shambles if MCA is forced to its knees to form the backbone of Hua Zhong's rumoured ambitions to be the dragon.


MORE TO COME

3 comments:

katdog said...

Let's be honest. Chinese have little political power in Malaysia not because of MCA's woes. Your political power is only as strong as the size of your support from voters. And the size of chinese votes have dwindled dramatically.

Chinese now only accounts for 25% of the population down from 37% at independence. By 2021, the number will be 21%.

Combine this with the fact that the majority of chinese live in urban areas. Votes in urban area's are a 'worth less' as it takes 3 urban votes to match 1 rural vote.

This means, the political 'impact' of chinese is a lot lower than 25%.

Therefore, even if MCA was whole and well, chinese would still wield little political power.

Therefore, in the long run, chinese would actually be served better by a non-racial party so that they can combine their votes with other races to have a stronger say in the government.

As time passes, MCA, a pure chinese party, can only get weaker not stronger. MCA will never reach the level of clout and strength it had during independence simply because he chinese are no longer there.

Even Penang soon will no longer be a chinese majority state as its population of chinese is now 42%. Malays at 40%.

TAAVEEKUN PERAK said...

To chase DAP out of Malaysia.

Anonymous said...

Keep posting stuff like this i really like it