BN can forget Selangor, says ex-MCA chief Ling

Former MCA president Ling Liong Sik predicted that BN will not be able to recapture the Selangor state government in the coming general election due to the clean image of Pakatan Rakyat leaders.

Aside from PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim, both Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim and Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng have never been involved in corruption and power abuse, helping  them to build a good image, said Ling.

“Generally, the Chinese are not favourable to BN, but in Perak there is no other choice. In Johor (BN) may lose some support but not to the extent of losing (the state government).

“This general election is very hard for BN, very hard. I think BN can still win because the government has been spending money under different names. This has never happened before,” he said in an exclusive interview with Chinese newspaper Sin Chew Daily.

Having led the Chinese party for 17 years (1986 to 2003), the longest-serving MCA president opined that the benchmark for BN to declare a victory is to regain the two-thirds parliamentary majority.

In contrast to former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Ling has seldom commented on politics and party affairs since quitting politics in 2003.

When asked about his views on current MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek (right), Ling described Chua as a smart and outspoken leader but unfortunately tainted by his sex DVD scandal.

“I hope the Chinese can give positive response to Chua’s efforts, but he has the DVD...,” he was quoted as saying.

On Chua’s predecessor Ong Tee Keat, who initiated investigations into the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal which led to Ling being charged with cheating the cabinet, Ling expressed his reservations.

‘Not right to says Ong is an enemy’

Asked whether Ong is still his friend, Ling paused before replying, “I don’t know. It is not right to say he is an enemy, maybe he wants to be your friend?”

“I don’t have his phone number. I am also sure that he does not have mine. But not having the phone number does not mean we are not friends. Old friends don’t need to see each other frequently, but when you are in trouble, they will know,” he said.

In March, the prosecution had successfully established a prima facie case against the 68-year-old former transport minister on charges of cheating the government in 2002 on the PKFZ project.

The trial will resume from June 18 to 22, July 2 to 5, 10 to 13 and 16 to 18.

Sharing his thoughts on the bigger picture of Malaysian politics, Ling agreed that a two-party system is good for Malaysia, but it must come with a competent opposition.

“It depends on the quality of the opposition. If they are terrible, then a two-party system would be hard to implement. If they are good... like Penang...

“In fact, DAP is doing a good job, but there was this dispute between party chairperson Karpal Singh and Penang Deputy Chief Minister II P Ramasamy,” he said.