Return of ‘lone ranger’ Ong Tee Keat and maverick Wee Choo Keong

 

Ong Tee Keat (left) and Wee Choo Keong have reappeared from the political wilderness.

PETALING JAYA: Former big name lawmakers Ong Tee Keat and Wee Choo Keong want to prove their political obituaries were premature.

They have hit the GE15 campaign trail as Warisan party pals and MP hopefuls, a far cry from the time when they were the fiercest of political rivals.

As an MCA leader, Ong had an acrimonious relationship with Wee’s previous parties, DAP and PKR. Today, the two men are offering themselves as champions of national unity.

Ong and Wee hope to reclaim the parliamentary seats of Pandan and Wangsa Maju which they had held for MCA and PKR respectively from 2008-2013.

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Ong, 66, and Wee, 69, said they did not feel that their image in Malaysian politics was sepia-tinted but they were going forth in an adventurous spirit to try to maim a leadership that chose ‘look the other way’ politics.

They said their bid to return to the political frontline after almost a decade owed much to partisan politics, the poor economy, and a society riven by bitterness.

Wee Choo Keong (centre), flanked by his supporters, on his way to file his nomination paper on Saturday. (Wee Choo Keong pic)

Wee, a maverick in his prime political days, said: “Malaysians are now walking on eggshells and second-guessing everything they think and say.”

Always proud of being a Kelantanese, he said GE15 was a contest between two polar opposite views of what Malaysia’s society and economy should look like.

“We need a mixture of experience, youth and idealism for the country to get back on its feet,” said Wee, a lawyer.

Ong, a former MCA president and two-term Pandan MP, said the nation was in dire need of a new and inspiring model of governance rooted in good race relations and religious harmony.

“The immediate challenges confronting me lie in the insufficient time to popularise Warisan’s political ideal of building a nation, not a race or a religion,” said the former transport minister and deputy Dewan Rakyat speaker.

The veterans said during their time in muted seclusion they had remained part of the communities with hands-on service, Ong being on an NGO platform, without publicity.

They said the absence of constituency service in both the areas remained one of the key concerns of voters.

Their agenda holds all things popular among voters, but will the constituents welcome their comeback?

Wangsa Maju elder CH Leow, 64, observed there was an inch of difference between the main candidates, “but it is that inch that we all live in”.

His son Simon, 28, fired: “Why should I vote when Parliament has become an elite conspiracy against the voters?”

Pandan voter Mohamad Sanusi, 32, asked: “What guarantee do we get that racial prejudice and religious intolerance will not prevail?”

His trader friend Ramli Samad added: “All of them are slippery politicians who achieve nothing.

“They talk about reviving the economy, tackling unemployment, improving basic infrastructure and providing affordable housing but to me it’s all about power.”

Ramli said GE15 was a stage for the self-importance of every candidate who wants to be loved at all costs.

With such a slap down from voters, Ong and Wee face a tough battle despite their track record in fighting for justice and making ministers and corporate leaders accountable for their actions.

Wee is involved in a six-cornered fight with Mohd Shafei Abdullah (BN-Umno), Zahir Hassan (PH-PKR), Nuridah Mohd Salleh (PN-PAS), Norzaila Arifin (GTA-Putra) and independent candidate Ravee Suntheralingam.

Ong is up against PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli, Leong Kok Wee (BN-MCA), Muhammad Farique Zubir Albakri (PN-PAS) and Pejuang’s Nadia Hanafiah.

Asked if he was concerned that the 1990s label of ‘lone ranger’ will stick in his campaign, Ong said: “It would indeed be unbelievable for a true lone ranger to keep a record of straight wins in six consecutive parliamentary terms.”

Ong, who had also served four terms as MP for Ampang Jaya, said: “The label of so-called lone ranger was first initiated by naysayers in MCA who were frustrated by my repeated successes in getting elected in the party polls albeit not being endorsed by the party’s top echelon.

“The silver lining of such a malicious label in the 1990s lies in the support I could gather in a hostile environment.” - FMT