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Monday, March 31, 2008

蔡细历促黄家定勿搞个人活动

《南洋商报31-3-08》

拿督斯里蔡细历提醒该党总会长拿督斯里黄家定,不要在这个非常时期搞个人的小 集团活动,应该把更多的精神投入在重建党的工作上,或协助那些在大选时成功率
超低的州属。

他表示,黄家定宣布放弃部长官职后却宣布出任柔佛州联委会主席,已经使到许多柔佛领袖感到纳闷,不过他们却碍于总会长的权力而不敢吭声。

“这些领袖包括该州多个区会、区团及妇女组及中选的马华国州议员,是在黄家定宣布出任柔佛州主席后都纷纷致电向我投诉.”

蔡细历是于昨晚在吉打州双溪大年出席吉中潮州会馆庆祝2周年纪念及网页推展礼后,在新闻发布会上向记者这么指出。马华中委兼吉打州主席拿督巴都卡马兴松、大年区会主席拿督马兴中、巴甲亚兰区州议员兼吉打州行政议员陈韦树、西塘区州议员陈楚江、吉中潮州会馆会长兼马青区团团长钟裕水等也有出席。

他指出,许多柔佛州马华领袖对于黄家定选择在大选时获得辉煌胜利的柔佛为州主席而感到惊奇,他们普遍上认为,总会长更应该把他的精力和才华放在重建党和重整大选胜出率超低的州属如槟州、雪州、森美兰、联邦直辖区、霹雳等。

他说,大选成绩显示,除了柔佛州获得85%的胜出率之外,其他州属如槟州、雪州、森美兰、霹雳、直辖区等胜出率超低,都不超过20%,这些州属还等着总会长协助。



English version

Dr. Chua urges Dato’ Seri Ong Ka Ting not to have any personal agenda and instead, he should put his effort on the task to rebuild the party and assist those states that have low winning percentage.

Dr. Chua expressed that Ong had earlier gave up his ministerial post but then he announced that he’s taking over the post of Johor MCA State Liaison Committee chairman. He said that the action taken by Ong has raised dissatisfaction among Johor MCA leaders but they do not dare to object because the President has his prerogative and power.

“These leaders include Johor MCA divisions, Wanita and Youth as well as MCA Member of Parliament and state assemblyman and they have been calling me to complain about Ong’s decision to take over Johor MCA,” he said.

He was saying this to the press in an event organized by the Teochew Association in Kedah.

Dr. Chua further pointed out that a lot of Johor MCA leaders feel strange that Ong chooses Johor to be the state chairman because they feel that Ong should have put in more effort and his talent on Penang, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Wilayah Persekutuan and Perak that has low percentage of winning in the election.

He said that election result shows that apart from Johor that has the highest winning percentage that is 85%, other states such as Penang, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan,Wilayah Persekutuan and Perak has winning rate of 20% and they are waiting for the President’s assistance.

- Nanyang Siang Pau, March 31 2008-





Friday, March 28, 2008

Forum: New Politics In Post Election Malaysia 2008


"Is ethnic based political party still relevant? What is BN, particularly MCA's future after the humiliating poor electoral loss.............."

I was invited to speak at a public forum on New Politics In Post Election Malaysia 2008 that was held at the Menara Star on 24 March 2008. The Speakers include Tony Pua, Charles Santiago, Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed and Datuk Seri Chia Kwang Chye.

More on:
http://videos.thestar.com.my/default.aspx?vid=1142

蔡细历:马华党员应保持团结‧通过当选定领袖去留

2008-03-14 19:59

(柔佛/昔加末)马华柔佛州联委会顾问拿督斯理蔡细历周五(14日)指出,马华党员目前应该保持团结,若有任何不满,可在当选时善用手中一票来决定领袖的去留。

他表示接受选民的决定,并且承认这次的成绩对马华带来严重的打击,也形容马华在这次大选的成绩是有史以来最糟的一次。

“这次大选,马华全国只有35%的候选人中选,这造成严重打击,众领袖和广大基层的士气都很低落。”

蔡细历在一项新闻发布会上说,党员在这个艰难的时刻不应闹分裂,反而应该团结一致站稳岗位,否则会让选民觉得马华“只为官职”。

他说,马华此事应该要有共同的议程和方向来重组党,加强党的足赤和形象,若党的斗争方向需要改变,应该适时作出改变。

“在这个时候针对任何领袖是不恰当的,当选将在不久后举行,党员若有任何不满,到时候可以用手中的一票来决定合适的领袖来领导党。”

人民支持非理所当然

他认为,相信和遵从民主精神的党员必能接受这种做法。他也说,这次大选给了马华领袖一个教训,即人民的支持并非理所当然的。

“一些领袖只会在有成就的时候,将之视为个人的努力;但面对问题时,却表示这是集体领导层的责任。这种言论让一些党员觉得不满。”

防造成“只重党职”形象

蔡细历也呼吁党员保持团结,否则会让人民觉得马华只注重党职,而不重视人民的决定。

蔡细历下午2时在马华拉美士国会议员服务中心,由12名柔北区会主席的陪同下召开新闻发布会。出席者包括郑贝川、高志财、李煌治医生、黄黄忠、拿督郑修强、蔡智勇、吴池池、林其妹等。

《星洲日報‧2008.03.14》

Speak up for Chinese rights, Chua tells MCA


Recently, New Straits Times interviewed me on the election results and what holds in future for MCA. Below are the full interview content.


Former health minister and MCA vice-president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek talks candidly to TAN CHOE CHOE, P. SELVARANI and DAVID YEOW about his party's crippling defeat

Q: Should MCA president Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting take responsibility for MCA's defeat and step down?
A: To be fair, (the defeat) is a collective responsibility. (But) Ka Ting's biggest problem is that he practises a "very exclusive type" of consultation. There are meetings every week, Central Committee meetings every month and party gatherings. I've been attending all these meetings for years, but I noticed people didn't speak the truth. They spoke only what the president wanted to hear. If you're articulate, they think you have some hidden agenda. The president is vested with executive powers to decide whom he wants to be the minister, the deputy or whatever. So, everybody wants to be in his good books, to be included. But it may come to a situation where the emperor with no clothes is the best-dressed emperor in the world.

I was in the cabinet for nearly four years, and I was also vice-president, but how often were we consulted openly on issues? Less than five times. Hush-hush meetings "got". That was Ka Ting's core weakness; the lack of trust in his colleagues. Somebody told me that was his basis for success.


Q: What do you think caused MCA's poor performance?

A: (It's a) disaster. There are two main factors. First was the generally negative sentiment of the voters towards the government. It was negative, very anti-establishment, but nobody realised how strong it was. There were many issues that cut across racial lines this time, like inflation. Although the government had done a lot to control the price of goods, the dissemination of information about what was done wasn't effective. People don't read the mainstream media. Then there was crime and the perception that there was abuse of power.People also felt some MPs were just clowning around in parliament, that they were not treating this august assembly with the respect it deserves.The talk about leaking roofs and "leaking women" hadn't gone down well, especially with the younger generation (who are) educated. There was also the Lingam video controversy. There were also shortfalls in the implementation of government policies. Religious issues concerning non-Muslims hadn't been satisfactorily resolved. The church groups were not happy. The second factor was that MCA kept singing the same old tune -- talking about Chinese school relocations, how many new schools they had built and how many scholarships had been given. They (the MCA leaders) say these are important. Congratulations, you've done a good job, but the community faces bigger problems. Problems like economic and educational opportunities, and fairness in dealing with every race on issues like licensing to professional practice. A lot of professional fields were really squeezed. Initially, we were told (professional firms) must have a Bumi partner, later they (Maybank) said it (Bumi shares) must be 50 per cent. We were unable to address these concerns. To be fair, MCA has done a lot over the years. But people want to see an MCA that is more vocal to articulate the frustrations of the Chinese, rather than an MCA saying it's resolving issues behind closed doors. This low-key manner adopted by Ka Ting has not gone down well. People feel we're playing second fiddle to big brother Umno and don't stand up at crucial moments.


Q: Do MCA leaders speak up for the community in the cabinet?

A: Yes, but we addressed it in a "fire-fighting" manner when I was in the cabinet. There was no clear-cut policy to set a direction. There was assurance, but no implementation. When elections came, we were still unable to address the bigger issues that were of concern to the community.I met a group of professionals recently who said, "Please doctor, wake up. These are only part of the problems. We have bigger problems which your party is not addressing."Giving out 500 scholarships is good, but only 500 families are happy. If the country is serious about building its human resources, all good deserving students should be given scholarships. Why must they go crying to MCA or to MIC for help? To the younger generation, it (education) is their right.Q: Has the MCA leadership become complacent? Is this why people lost confidence in the party?A: I won't say that but we were feeling very comfortable. We thought we had done a lot. Just before the general election, we got the minister of education to make some announcements, give RM5 million here, RM10 million there.The Chinese regarded these as an insult. They said, "We are not beggars. Why give us this RM10 million now? Why couldn't you give it earlier?" Q: There was talk that some MCA members were also campaigning for the opposition. A: If you parachute candidates and it doesn't go down well with the grassroots and their feelings are not taken care of, I'm sure they would have. But I wouldn't say MCA failed because of their campaigning.


Q: Do the election results signify the beginning of the end of racial politics?

A: It only signifies that (when) pent-up feelings and frustrations are so high, people will vote across racial lines. Barisan Nasional is still relevant, so is MCA -- if we know how to re-brand, re-strategise, admit our mistakes and rebuild on the strong foundation that we have laid down. We still have a good organisational structure. The opposition doesn't have the machinery and the members (yet) they won handsomely. Some were so confident that they stood for parliament and state and won both.Politics is the art of perception, real or imagined. And they (the opposition) have done well to show they care, can connect with the people and be a force to articulate their dissatisfactions.


Q: You previously said MCA might have taken its rejuvenation exercise too far by dropping a lot of experienced and reliable candidates. Why?

A: People can accept that the party wants to rejuvenate and introduce a mixture of young, old and middle-aged, but local sentiment must be considered . I can list many cases where we failed and it was because of the candidate. Whether you like it or not, the divisional chairman is the warlord, be he from Umno, MIC or MCA. So if I'm the wakil rakyat and I've been serving my people well, but you tell me, "you've served three terms, your time is up" and put in somebody else -- not many can accept that.


Q: But what about the case of Datuk Lee Hwa Beng (MCA candidate for Kelana Jaya) who served the public, especially in Subang Jaya, faithfully for almost 12 years? He lost to Loh Gwo Burne, a virtual unknown?

A: Sometimes, voters can become emotional. They wanted to send a strong message, to teach BN a lesson. In Hwa Beng's case, Loh Seng Kok (former Kelana Jaya member of parliament) had also served the area well. So there may be people who voted for the alternative out of sympathy for Loh.


Q: Should MCA do away with its three-term policy?

A: I think it is healthy politics for a (capable) leader not to be limited to serving only three terms. Here you have a deputy (deputy party president) who said just one day before nomination day that he was retiring because of health reasons. Do you think people (can) accept it? Things like this have caused the people to distrust the party.


Q: Gerakan was almost wiped out and MCA took quite a beating. There are suggestions on the ground that the two should combine forces and reinvent themselves as a multiracial organisation.

A: I've said MCA is still relevant, just like Umno and MIC because racial politics will be with us for quite some time. The question now is how MCA can rebuild itself after this disaster. It was founded 60 years ago on a purely racial basis to look after the interests of the Chinese. We have this fixation that if we have developed the new villages, taken care of educational opportunities by building TAR (Tunku Abdul Rahman) university college, built Chinese schools, relocated some, and given them money, then the Chinese community would be satisfied. We also thought we should look after the longkang, the garbage, the back of people's houses; because DAP don't do it and we do, so we are great and people will vote us. What they didn't see is that people think all these are the job of the government. So what are we shouting about? It's the government machinery and delivery system that is not good; that's why we have to do it. We have to come up with a new strategy, new image. That we are not just a Chinese-based party, but we accept the political reality that we exist in a multiracial country.We have to address some of the problems in the context of a multi-racial society. The basic services are important, but some MCA wakil rakyat who have done these excellently still lost shamefully.That means people rejected them. They want us to address and articulate more fundamental and bigger issues. So we have to re-brand ourselves to show we are relevant and are able to articulate their frustrations. We cannot stay low-profile, low-key. We should let people know that we are addressing their issues and let the press know about it.


Q: Do you think MCA should be more vocal now?

A: MCA shouldn't have this fixation with Chinese schools, new villages -- these are important, but more important is to ensure the government is fair in dealing with all issues, like the economic opportunities on an expanding economic cake. The perception is that the NEP (New Economic Policy) is still on and anything you do, you must have Bumi participation.We must tell the Chinese they are not marginalised, that they're still relevant, still part of the mainstream economic development and they are doing well.


Q: Do you think the interests of the Chinese and Indians are going to be properly addressed now that they have less representation in government?

A: That's what we've been telling the Indians and Chinese. I have a very big Indian community in Labis -- 18 per cent. They told me recently that half of them have gone to DAP and Pas. They said "we've been voting faithfully but there's been no change". They've been staying in estates like their fathers before them, so what representation are you talking about? At least, the new party gives them hope. So until we address their problems, the Indian community has a lot (of reasons) to be against the government. The estate community was a self-contained community which they could be proud of 30 years ago. They had their quarters, their water, their own health (facilities).But 30 years on, things have not changed. The estates made a lot of money but nobody paid attention to them, until Hindraf (Hindu Rights Action Force) came and there was a sudden awakening. It's only logical they voted differently.Meanwhile, the Chinese said they voted MCA in the best and worst of times, but it's still the same.


Q: Why didn't you voice these opinions earlier?

A: How do you know I never did? If I hadn't, do you think I would be such an unfavourable man in the party? I would have been the favoured son.


Q: Do you agree with Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad's call for the prime minister to resign because of BN's performance in the polls?

A: The prime minister not only looks after the component parties, but also the country. His responsibility is not just to Umno but to all other parties and races. So when you have a bad outing like this, it may cause a lot of problems if he suddenly steps down. People may think that he's irresponsible.
(Taken from NST Online)

Welcome to my Blog

As a concerned MCA member, I am trying my best to help in the process of rebuilding and repositioning of the party.

Therefore, I welcome party members and members of public to post your constructive suggestions and opinions on my blog on how to rebuild and reform the party, eventually enabling MCA to regain support from all party members and the community.


Thank you for your suggestions.