We failed to listen to the pulse of the people, says MCA chief

MCA president Wee Ka Siong condemns Pakatan Harapan leaders, including Primary Industries Minister Teresa Kok, at the party’s AGM.

KUALA LUMPUR: MCA today acknowledged a power imbalance within Barisan Nasional (BN), and took a swipe at the coalition’s leaders who lacked integrity and had grown arrogant with power.

Party president Wee Ka Siong admitted that MCA had many shortcomings and did not work hard enough.

“We failed to listen to the pulse of the people and as a result, lost touch with the Chinese community and the young generation.

“For this, voters have loudly told us that we have erred.

“We must accept their decision, we must listen, and we must reflect on our mistakes,” he said in his policy speech at the party’s annual general meeting at Wisma MCA here today.

Also present were former president Liow Tiong Lai, as well as other top party leaders and delegates.

Wee said the time was now ripe to re-examine the party and members should ask themselves “what kind of MCA do we want?”.

“Should we be an active participant in the arena of politics? Should we be humble in listening to criticisms? Should we be a young and energetic party?

“This is a make-or-break situation. Our actions determine the standing of MCA in the time to come. If we are passive, MCA will be passive. If we exert ourselves to grow, MCA will be reinvigorated.

“Each and every one of us holds the pen to write the fate of MCA. If we want a role in it, we need to lift ourselves up and be proactive in keeping up with the times,” he said.

The Ayer Hitam MP urged MCA members to be knowledgeable in the economic discourse. He then took aim at Pakatan Harapan (PH), saying its biggest weakness is going back on its promises and introducing “U-turns” to its policies.

This, he said, included continuing with the National Civics Bureau despite an earlier promise to shut it down.

Wee cited other examples such as the change of concept in the 20% royalty for oil-producing states; the failure of prices of goods to come down as promised; the failure of the ringgit to stabilised; and the failure to recognise the Unified Education Certificate (UEC).

He also condemned the suppression of Tunku Abdul Rahman University College; the government’s failure to repeal the National Security Council Act; the proposed third national car project; the crooked bridge project; and the failure to distribute funds to Chinese vernacular schools.

Wee said instead of recognising the UEC as promised, PH had issued a directive to wear black school shoes and black socks, and the hotel operators were advised to open up their pools for schoolchildren.

“PH promised to abolish toll collection but tolls are still standing proudly on highways. The coalition championed open tender and yet introduced five exceptions to pave the way for direct negotiations. Instead of tackling the human rights issue of child marriage, they are rushing to abolish the death penalty and amend the law to restrict the sale of alcohol to 21-year-olds,” he said.

Wee pointed out that half a year had passed since PH took over and the pockets of Malaysians were now empty.

He claimed Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng, who is an accountant by training, had yet to prove his ability.

“It has been six months since the change of government, so PH can no longer brush the people aside with excuses like ‘the government coffers are empty’ or ‘it’s all Barisan Nasional’s fault’. How long should the people wait?

“All these show to us that PH is only an election machine that is incapable of running the country. They rule the country with empty promises and empty words.

“But we need to bear in mind that people’s dissatisfaction will not translate into votes easily. Besides strengthening our efforts in monitoring PH’s ridiculous policies, we need to be consistent in delivering economic discourse and get closer to the grassroots by speaking their language,” he said.

Wee cited the recent drop in palm oil prices, stating that people were not happy about what was happening, with some smallholders saying they were suffering huge losses.

“But Teresa Kok might be busy with producing her Chinese New Year video, so she has not been paying much attention to the issue.

“She has also made several absurd remarks, such as encouraging rubber tappers to work through the rainy season and adding a contraption to rubber trees to shelter tappers from the rain,” he said, referring to the primary industries minister.

Wee also called on MCA to create values to nurture new talents. - FMT