All 11 MCA ministers and deputy ministers will focus their fire on 20 'winnable' parliamentary constituencies in the next two months in an attempt to retain at least 15 seats in the next general election.

The Chinese-based party captured only 15 parliamentary seats in the last general election, one of MCA's worst electoral results in its 63-year history.

Citing internal sources, Chinese daily Nanyang Siang Pau reported today that the decision was reached at a recent party presidential council meeting.

From next month, all four ministers and seven deputy ministers will visit these 20 constituencies and hold feasts, ceramah and pay door-to-door visits to engage with the voters, hoping to translate their support into votes.

MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek has also issued instructions to present themselves at those activities and must give prior notice if they are not able to, a central leader told the Chinese daily.

However, the report did not identify the 20 seats.

It said that among the 15 incumbent seats, five Chinese-majority seats are MCA's biggest worry: Gelang Patah, Kulai, Tanjung Piai and Kluang in Johor, and Pandan in Selangor.

NONE "Should the president fail to retain at least 15 seats, he will most like have to step down," an unnamed MCA leader told the daily.

According to him, it would be impossible for former MCA president Ong Tee Keat to defend his Pandan constituency as MCA will swap the seat with Umno, which has been eyeing it.

Pandan is the only parliamentary seat in Selangor won by MCA in the 2008 general election. Ong has been trying to make a comeback after he was defeated by Chua in the 2010 party election.

Kulai, another parliamentary seat held by former MCA president Ong Ka Ting, is also deemed dicey as Chinese make up 58 percent of the electorate.

The report said Chua wants Deputy Higher Education Minister Ho Kok Chong, a Ka Ting protege, to move from his current constituency, Kluang, to take over from Ka Ting in Kulai, but was rejected by Ho, who has insisted that he either defend Kluang or not contest at all.

MCA vice-president and Deputy Youth and Sports Minister Gan Ping Sieu is also eyeing Kluang, making this a  problematic matter for Chua.

On Chua's candidacy, the daily quoted a MCA central leader as saying that the former health minister would most likely will not be fielded, because of his sex DVD scandal.

Should Chua do so, the leader said, the 2007 sex scandal could be played up as a national issue by the opposition and MCA as a whole could suffer collateral damage.