A Lesson for Brutus(es) in MCA

OPINION THE following is a true account of a conversation I had with a taxi driver in Kuala Lumpur last Tuesday. Well, he was doing most of the talking and I, the listening.

I think the cabbie who must be about 60 years old is a very politically conscious guy and, an opinionated one too. I pretended I know nothing about politics but only threw in little comments just to prod him on.

And the man was on fire with his language! He was very expressive about how he feels on certain issues. As a Chinese, MCA politics was naturally his topic of the day – as it has been in the Chinese papers throughout this past week.

At the end of the 40-minute ride in the taxi, I have a full account about what’s going on in the MCA. He was particularly upset with the recent episode of betrayal by some of MCA president Ong Tee Keat’s ‘closest people’.

Such characters MCA can do without

On his list of Brutus(es) were vice-president Liow Tiong Lai, Youth chief Wee Ka Siong and Wanita leader Chew Mei Fun.

He was particularly very hard hitting on Liow. “We don’t need that kind of characters in the MCA. If one day, Liow really becomes president, it’s possible he may even sell the MCA to the highest bidder.

“What is this? Ong trusted Liow all along but once Ong is in trouble, he will create more trouble for him. Worse, Liow wants to take over as president through the back door which is wrong.

“Ong Tee Keat made a big mistake in trusting such friends. When you have such people as friends, who need enemies?” he added.

The cabbie, who called himself Ah Khoon, said he would prefer Ong or even Dr Chua Soi Lek any time to helm the MCA but not a betrayer like Liow or any member of his gang.

When I asked who he thinks is the best man to lead MCA at the moment, he mentioned “Datuk Lim Ah Lek” (former deputy president) without hesitation.

Why? “Lim Ah Lek is the ‘cleanest’ MCA leader around. He may be getting on in years but MCA needs a personality like him today. I believe he will reform the party, starting with ridding it of selfish leaders who are in the MCA only to promote their own interests. And there are many such people in the party today.

“After Lim, I would go for Ong Tee Keat. He is a tough nut to crack, a straight talker with a mind of his own. MCA can do with a gung-ho president like him for a change from all the ‘yes men’ who were party presidents previously.

Ah Khoon added that he found no fault with Ong Tee Keat yet so far in his first year as MCA president.

"Perhaps his only mistake was being too trusting and not noticing the would-be betrayers lurking around him," he said.

Asked whom he would like to see as Ong’s successor, he replied, “Like others, I thought Liow Tiong Lai is a good choice. But after what he did this week, he is definitely out.

“Honestly, I cannot think of a name from the current crop of MCA leaders as a possible successor to Ong. Somehow, I don’t trust many of them,” he added.

Take note, Tiong Lai

If I were a politician, I will pay attention to what the men in the street (like Ah Khoon the cabbie) have to say. These are the people on the ground and they form a sizable number of voters who can break or make a politician at the polls.

Liow Tiong Lai, the overly ambitious guy who is prepared to betray his boss in order to get what he wants, could do well to take heed of Ah Khoon’s conversation with me.

No matter what you say about your plans for the betterment of MCA, Tiong Lai, your attempt at betraying the party president has not gone down well with the grassroots. I think even your supporters and voters (if they have a conscience) in Bentong will not be able to tolerate what you have done.

So start nursing this ‘political ailment’ of yours and beef up your ‘political health’, Mr Health Minister.

But as the MCA drama played out on Thursday, Ong Tee Keat’s gang of betrayers was out-manouvered by Ong and his group who stuck with him.

We can all rejoice that the plot hatched by the ‘Brutus(es)’ to oust Ong has been thwarted. And Ah Khoon the cabbie must be a very happy man too.

So is the desire by Ong and Chua to patch up for real? How are they going to go about it?

This is best answered by Dr Chua himself when he told reporters on Thursday that “politics is about making the possible impossible and also the impossible possible”.

PAUL SIR is a columnist with The Borneo Post. His article is reproduced here with permission. He can be reached at paulsir99@hotmail.com This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it