MCA politicians cannot help Najib – TK Chua

As I read through the news reports of what was said by the president of MCA and the prime minister’s rejoinder at the MCA general assembly, I can’t help but feel the sense of schism between the government and the people and also between the various political parties within Barisan Nasional (BN).

The gulf in expectation and reality we face today as a nation is simply too wide and inconceivable.

Seriously, does Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak require reminders from the MCA chief that the nation is “under threat” of hatred and extremism that is growing at an alarming pace? If by now the prime minister is still not aware, then I think we are seriously in trouble.

To me, the prime minister ought to know the situation in the country by now.  If not, he is probably too blind to see and too deaf to hear.  A reminder from MCA president Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai would be too late or too futile to turn the situation around.

Liow has also asked for a National Reconciliation Council to be set up to address the “disagreements that arise as a result of differences in politics, religion and race”.  

To this, I wish to say that he was probably providing a wrong answer to a wrong question.

There is really nothing much to reconcile when there are no inherent differences among the people. I sincerely believe most Malaysians of various races and religions are willing to live in harmony, to give and take and to compromise if the authorities are willing to play fair and have zero tolerance for any nonsense.

However, it is entirely a different ballgame when these differences are deliberately orchestrated and fermented to create fear, insecurity and diversion. No amount of reconciliation would be able to do the job under such circumstances.

What puzzles me more was the PM’s response when he said MCA has been “vocal” and loud in articulating national issues for his attention.

He also praised MCA for working within the proper channels, thus earning them more respect, as this was more effective than “shouting from outside”.

Again, the issue here is not whether MCA has been vocal or docile; loud or soft; and using proper channels or shouting from outside. The issue is whether or not our prime minister is able to hear them.

I am a realist, if he can’t hear the shouting from outside, it is most likely he can’t hear the whispering from within. The issue is his willingness and ability to play fair and to act decisively on behalf of all citizens of this country.  

The prime minister again got it all wrong when he told MCA to garner more support from the Chinese Malaysian community if the party wishes to hold more government posts.

Can we see the irony here?  The carrot is always the posts and the benefits the politicians are likely to enjoy in exchange for the support they could garner.

The prime minister has obviously got his priority wrong.

MCA politicians per se can’t garner support for him. Likewise, it is not Chinese politicians from the opposition who are enticing the Chinese away from BN.

Ultimately, it is always the policies, governance and competence of BN versus the federal opposition that will decide.

Soon, Indian and Malay Malaysians will also wake up to this new reality.

* TK Chua reads The Malaysian Insider.