MCA currently claims over one million members and for long, has played the leading role representing the Chinese community to negotiate with the Malay-Umno at national level.

Compared to the time of its inception the party was to take care of Chinese petty capitalists and businessmen. MCA today is still widely regarded as a channel to turn to when it comes to establishing relations with policy-makers and leaders for business purposes.

Though MCA wields relatively little power in dispensing government contracts and licences, its careful manoeuvre of Chinese businesses within the community, particularly the small and medium-sized industries sector, still gives rise to its role as a patron. Education wise, MCA has also been giving out scholarships and loans especially at its Tunku Abdul Rahman College.

As a party president, one can influence the choice of candidates running for the general elections and subsequently who gets to be ministers, deputy ministers and other government posts. In that aspect, the president  like a King in his own kingdom  will decide the rise and fall of an individuals political career at national level, not just party level.

Seen in a larger context, the fight to control the helm of the party also has to do with the decline of MCAs influence and benefits in domestic politics.

Once the sole party claiming legitimate representation of the entire Chinese community, MCA today notices many organisations  particularly civil groups such as Suqiu or National Elections Appeal Committee comprising the new generation of Chinese youngsters  prefer to deal with the establishment directly.

In fact, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamads appointment of two non-MCA Chinese advisers was also seen as proof that even the government, or Umno, does not want to deal solely with MCA on Chinese community issues.

Gerakan factor

MCAs role was further eroded by its rival, Gerakan, for Chinese votes. Gerakan is a party started by a splinter group which has a strong grip over Penang, a northern state which once belonged to MCA until the late 1960s. A party preaching non-communal approach, Gerakan, is increasingly being identified with the Chinese community.

In terms of federal ministerial posts, the number of seats allocated to MCA has decreased from 29 percent in 1962 to 23 percent in 1996. Furthermore, the significance of the posts has also diminished. Once in charge of both the portfolios of finance as well as trade and industry, the party now only oversees transport, health, housing, and human resource.

In short, the struggle to control the party is largely due to two factors: One, the power for patronage as to decide who gets what, when and how ; and two, the shrinking political and social power, especially in the Chinese community, and thus leading to a more vigorous fight for an already declining recognition.

But in party vice-president Chua Jui Mengs case, trying to get even with those who have smeared him matters too. President Ling Liong Sik had openly said Chua previously agreed with the Nanyang takeover but changed his mind later. The party chief had also accused Chua of spreading lies about him and his family without stating clearly what the lies were about.

Chua stands a good chance if he were to confront Ling in the party elections. But keeping the momentum going will not be easy. Already Ling is exercising damage control, such as dishing out Universiti of Tunku Abdul Rahman or Utar, to win back the hearts and minds of MCA members and most of all, the Chinese community.

Due to the severe bickering which made headlines almost everyday, many MCA leaders and members have come out and asked for both camps to close ranks for the sake of party stability. It works. Some predict that those delegates who were initially aligned to Team B may go for party stability than a change of leadership.

The morale for supporters of Team B was further weakened as many members feel that Chua is unwilling to risk whatever he has now. Chua, or rather Team B, still has not announced the next move. This could be (mis)construed as cowardly, or being over-calculative, about the consequences should they fail to bring down Ling  MCA in recent years is known to be a zero sum political game where the winner takes all. And time is running out.

Chuas ally and vice-president Chan Kong Choy was also rumoured to be unhappy with the fact that deputy president Lim Ah Lek has shifted his attention to Chua, a charge that Chan has yet to deny. Chan, however, has said he is no fence-sitter and he will stick to Team B.

Undoubtedly, Ling still gains the upper hand in controlling the party  he has the majority of presidential council and central committee members backing him. Yet all this may change should a majority of some 2,600 delegates decide to turn their back on Ling at the next party elections.

Phantom members

The ugly spectre of phantom members also reared its head in recent months. Team B claimed that the list of 138,000 new members recruited over the past five months is tainted and that the recruitment was to give certain leaders advantage in the upcoming party elections.

The tactic of registering more branches was to translate into more delegates to the divisional meetings and subsequently influence the general assembly, where party leadership is chosen next year.

This mirrored the split in 1980s between then MCA acting president Neo Yee Pan and his opponent Tan Koon Swan, in which phantom members were signed up to outdo each other at the partys general assembly. Malays and Indians were registered as members using Chinese names, some of them deceased.

It is now about a few months away from the partys annual general assembly scheduled for June 29. Team B is expected to make public its plan.

Since beginning of this year, it has been reported that both opposing factions have approached Mahathir and his deputy Abdullah Ahmad Badawi regarding the membership list. Observers noted that while Team A attempts to talk Barisan Nasional out of any attempt to interfere in the MCA elections, Team B harbours hope that the Umno-led coalition will help clean up the list before the party polls.

The party elections at branch, division, and state levels in the next two months, though mundane, will give a good picture of who may emerge as the winner at Junes AGM.

Lim on Tuesday challenged Ling to resign if an independent verification exercise is carried out and its findings prove the existence of phantom members. Ling, in return, called on Lim to state whether he will be contesting for party presidency.

Whoever the winner may be, one thing is for sure: while MCA is busy handling its rivalry and fanfare from within, the Chinese community, especially the large segment which was previously drawn to the MCA, may have made up their mind on whom not to cast their votes for in the coming general elections.

Some 65 to 70 percent of Malay-Muslim voters turned against the ruling BN in the last general elections which was held a year after the sacking and subsequent jailing of former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim; 60 percent of Chinese voted otherwise and helped secure the dominance of BN in Parliament.

And these pivotal voters may just deal a huge blow to the ruling BN in the next general elections by 2004, that is, if they can first outgrow their fear of PAS and its Islamic state agenda.

Part I