MCA: Nazri has no right to ask Kuok to waive citizenship

Umno's onslaught against tycoon Robert Kuok over allegations of funding opposition parties may sour race relations, MCA warned.

In a statement, MCA secretary-general Ong Ka Chuan said the allegations by several Umno leaders and Raja Petra Kamaruddin were attempts to spread hatred and cause disunity.

"The victim will not just be Kuok, but inter-communal ties," he said.

In particular, Ong hit out at Umno supreme council member Nazri Abdul Aziz (photo) for demanding that Kuok surrenders his citizenship.

"The tourism minister has no right to demand any Malaysian to surrender his or her citizenship. It is not within his authority to do so," he said.

Ong stressed that Kuok was not just a successful businessman, but a person who has contributed to the country.

Meanwhile, MCA spokesperson Ti Lian Ker said Nazri's disparaging comments against Kuok will not help BN but instead benefit DAP.

"Robert Kuok as a businessman has every right to support whichever political party he deems fit.

"Personally, I believe he as a businessman could have supported many political parties and politicians from BN or Harapan too.

"There's no need to overreact by being ill-mannered in this instance," said Ti in a statement.

He was referring a barrage of insults by Nazri that was hurled against Kuok. 

Ti urged his BN cohorts to "maintain our cool" as the general election campaign heats up and not go overboard.

Kuok's (photo) name was dragged into politics following an article by Raja Petra which accused the tycoon of funding DAP and The Malaysian Insight.

Apart from Nazri, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, BN secretary-general Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor and Umno supreme council member Tajuddin Abdul Rahman reacted to this by claiming that Kuok was being ungrateful.

Meanwhile, Ong urged DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang to train his guns on Umno leaders, Raja Petra and not MCA, if he was unhappy with the attacks against Kuok.

Earlier today, Lim said, by Kuok's own admission in his memoirs, MCA had been "saved" several times by the tycoon.

Therefore, if MCA does not defend Kuok from the "gratuitous" attacks by Umno leaders now, it would leave an "eternal blot" on the party.

"If MCA is not able to defend Kuok from Umno's recent gratuitous attacks, maybe MCA should cancel its 69th-anniversary celebrations altogether," said Lim.

MCA will celebrate the anniversary on March 3.- Mkini