The consequences of playing dirty and getting caught at it is starting to seriously hurt MCA president Chua Soi Lek. Not only has his party banned him from further debates with Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, he is bound to feel further heat from being found out in yet another lie - this time regarding MCA Tourism minister Ng Yen Yen and Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Soi Lek had slammed Guan Eng for using last Sunday's debate to attack other BN leaders, one of whom he said was Yen Yen.
According to Soi Lek, Guan Eng should not have picked on Yen Yen for holding Australian permanent residency as she had no choice due to Anwar's "restrictive" policies that discriminated against Chinese students.
“Because at that time when Anwar was the minister of education, he was very restrictive to the non-Bumiputras and a lot of Chinese cannot get into university. In this country, there are a lot of people who apply for PR for the sake of their children’s education,” said Soi Lek.
Sidestepped questions on Yen Yen
However, Anwar was Education minister only from 1986 to 1991. During the time that Yen Yen applied for PR, it was Sulaiman Daud, who was the Education minister from 1991 to 1995.
Not only did Soi Lek not offer any details on Anwar's alleged restrictive policies, he also shied away from giving a direct answer as to whether Yen Yen had told her party of her PR when they appointed her Senator.
As DAP's Anthony Loke has pointed out, the bone of contention was not the Australian PR per se but why Yen Yen she did not disclose this information to her party and the BN government.
“What is past is past. She has already said very clearly, it’s for the sake of education,” said Soi Lek.
Proud
On Monday, Yen Yen told reporters that she applied for the PR in 1990s but surrendered it in 1995 after her son completed his law degree.
"This is typical of Guan Eng. He ran out of issues and instead dug up something that happened 20 years ago. I went to Australia for my son's education. I am very proud of it as my son is a very successful lawyer. I have no regrets," said Yen Yen.
She told reporters she decided to offer the 'clarification' after Guan Eng made reference to it during the Sunday debate. Guan Eng, who is also the DAP sec-gen, however did not name her.
Failed maneuver
Meanwhile, Soi Lek said the presidential council decided to ground him because Guan Eng had abused the debate to “attack others”.
“They feel that I am wasting my time. They feel that Lim is just using the debate to attack others. He does not reply to any questions asked. He planned to come here to do a ceramah, not to participate in a debate," said Soi Lek.
That he is unhappy over the entire episode is clear but as they say, what goes around comes around.
In the run up to the Sunday debate, MCA leaders led by Soi Lek had launched a co-ordinated attack against the Pakatan Rakyat, which was due to culminate with Soi Lek delivering the coup de' grace by 'finishing off' Guan Eng.
But a planned expose' against the Selangor Pakatan's debt restructuring scheme for ailing property firm Talam went awry. Led by Soi Lek's son, Tee Yong, the ambush backfired and Tee Yong has ended up with mud in his own face after making accusations based on incorrect figures.
Malacca MCA chief Gan Tian Loo also stirred up a hornet's nest from which the MCA is unlikely to recover from for a while. Gan and MCA tried to discredit Guan Eng by accusing him of having an affair but instead of accusing him directly, they tried to do so through his wife - the DAP Kota Laksamana assemblywoman - by grilling her in the Malacca state assembly.
When challenged to repeat the allegations outside the assembly, where they would no longer enjoy immunity from being sued, neither Gan, Soi Lek or any other MCA leader dared to do so. Yet they expected the Chinese to somehow take their side despite their less than honorable behavior. However, the reality is that the MCA and Soi Lek have incurred even greater public odium than before.
A disgrace
Now by blaming Anwar and making such wild and factually incorrect statements, pundits say it looks like Soi Lek knows that even the MCA no longer has any room for him. Desperate, he has fired whatever he could lay his hands on.
"It is a most spiteful thing to do - behavior that is not befitting the president of the MCA or any other leader worth his salt. Soi Lek only shames MCA again with his wild comment against Anwar," PKR vice president Chua Jui Meng told Malaysia Chronicle.
"The MCA may now be at low tide and desperate. But no matter how desperate, one should never tear away at one's face to such an ugly extent. It is a shameful day for the Chinese community not just the MCA to have a member like Soi Lek."
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