MCA to field new, young faces in next GE

The party’s strategic move is to fish the ever increasing vibrant, vocal and influential cyber-savvy young voters.

GEORGE TOWN: MCA will field only winnable candidates, with more young, fresh faces, to contest the party’s 40 parliamentary and 95 state seats in the next general election.

In its quest to regain its lost position as leading Chinese-based party in the country, the party has decided to field a mix of old, middle aged and youthful candidates.

The drastic transformation in the political landscape in the last general election resulted in the DAP replacing MCA as country’s leading Chinese-dominated party.

MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek however, indicated that the youth would have a better chance for candidacy.

The party’s strategic move is to fish the ever increasing vibrant, vocal and influential cyber-savvy young voters.

“MCA will field winnable candidates made of a mixture of youth and experience.

“We want to field candidates that the people want, not who the party wants,” he told some 1,000 MCA delegates at the Penang MCA annual convention in Bayan Baru’s Hotel Vistana here yesterday.

He called on MCA young members to explore the cyber space to question the lack of competence of Pakatan Rakyat, especially the DAP, state governments and leaders.

He noted in current political scenario, promoting Barisan Nasional development policies alone would not work.

“We must also counter attack Pakatan on its incompetency, lies and unfulfilled promises.

“We must also put Pakatan on the backfoot,” Chua said in his presidential speech.

Also present were MCA national deputy president Liow Tiong Lai, secretary general Kong Cho Ha, vice presidents Chor Chee Heung and Dr Ng Yen Yen, who is also state chief, and other national and state leaders.

In Penang, MCA will contest four parliament and 10 state seats under the BN electoral arrangement.

In 2008, MCA lost all.

Penang will have a Chinese CM

Chua announced at a press conference later that two local MCA veterans, state MCA deputy chairman Loh Hock Hun and appointed central committee member Koay Kar Huah have call it a day from electoral politics, though they would remain active in party.

Loh is former Paya Terubong assemblyman and Koay is former Seri Delima state representatives. Both have also served as state executive councilors in previous BN government.

Loh has been appointed as the state MCA election director.

Chua acknowledged the party faced an uphill task to capture public imagination in Penang in the next polls.

Given that MCA would contest Chinese-majority constituencies in Penang, he claimed that the state ruling party, DAP had craftily manipulated the racial cards to woo the voters.

“The DAP has been telling Chinese voters to back the party to retain a Chinese-dominated state government,” he claimed.

To a hypothetical question, Chua said in an event of BN victory in the next election, the state government would be led by an ethnic Chinese leader.

On whether MCA would stake claim for the chief minister’s post, he said it can be only discussed after seeing the election results.

“These are general principles agreed upon within BN,” he said.