PETALING JAYA — To the Malaysian Chinese community, the 14th general elections will either see DAP wiping out MCA, or the latter recouping some of its lost ground.
The heavyweight candidates named by DAP to face off with MCA’s equally powerful candidates in several parliamentary constituencies will bring new challenges to MCA, which vows to not only retain its existing seven seats but also wrestle 13 others from the hands of the opposition.
The 13 parliamentary seats MCA is eyeing to recapture are Alor Setar, Raub. Kampar, Seremban, Wangsa Maju, Padang Serai, Gopeng, Bakri, Lumut, Kluang, Gelang Patah, Bandar Tun Razak and Kuantan.
DAP’s Liew Chin Tong, who will run into MCA deputy president Wee Ka Siong in the latter’s stronghold Ayer Hitam, says he only has 45% chance of winning, while MCA’s three-term incumbent says vaguely he will “surrender his fate to the voters”, shying away from speculating on his chances of re-election.
Stronghold
Even against the backdrop of a powerful call to change the federal government in 2013, Wee Ka Siong won by a landslide with a 19.37% more votes than his challenger, PAS’ Hu Pang Chaw.
Malays made up the bulk of Ayer Hitam’s voters at 56% (2013), followed by the Chinese at 38%. For the last three elections in 2004, 2008 and 2013, Wee managed to thump his PAS challengers, winning with a 5-digit majority over his challengers in the first two of these three elections.
Liew Chin Tong is going to be confronted not only by a strong candidate who has been reigning supreme in Ayer Hitam for over a decade, but he will also need to watch out for PAS which is out to divert some of the Malay votes away.
DAP is pinning its hopes on a “Malay tsunami” that will see Malay voters who used to support PAS now turning to DAP, a presumption MCA apparently sneers at.
According to a Facebook survey conducted by Sinchew.com.my from March 19, some 3,758 Facebook users (as of yesterday) believe Liew has a strong chance of above 50% to take down Wee, while only 281 feel Liew has less than 30% chance of defeating the incumbent.
-mysinchew
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