Contrary to claims by former MCA president Ong Ka Ting that he left the party ‘organised and united’ when he stepped down in 2008, incumbent MCA president Ong Tee Keat said it is “common knowledge” that he had inherited many problems that plagued MCA.

“He (Ka Ting) can make such a claim, but the fact remains that the disciplinary case involving Dr Chua Soi Lek... that was the legacy I inherited, because that case was supposed to be resolved during his tenure and of course when I had no choice but to take it over, so I had to go by the rules and do the due diligence,” Tee Keat was quoted as saying by Bernama today.

mca agm 070310 ong tee keat 01 Tee Keat, who is also transport minister, also recounted the embarrassment suffered by the party following the “unprecedented defeat” by MCA during the 2008 general election while Ka Ting was at the helm.

“That was a time a lot of people including (other) candidates and myself, (who) felt that there were issues like Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ)  that was (developing into) a time-bomb (but) that we failed to address at the height of the election.

“Ka Ting was still the president then," he asserted.

Tee Keat also stressed, however, that he mentions the said scandals with no intention to cast aspersions on anybody, as he just  wanted to put the facts and the record straight.

Ka Ting dismayed by state of affairs

Ka Ting, when announcing his return to MCA on March 16, had stated that when he announced he would not to seek re-election as president, he thought he was “leaving the party in safe and united hands.”

ong ka ting interview 200310 02 “To my great dismay, this not only turned out to be otherwise, but also, the good values of healthy political culture.

“Good governance and collective leadership, practised and advocated by my team during my presidency, have become almost entirely a thing of the past as soon as I have retired,” said Ka Ting, a former housing and local government minister.

Last night, Ka Ting said in a television interview that he did not rule out the possibility of reaching an agreement with Tee Keat to the effect that one of them would pull out of the contest for the party’s top post at its polls on March 28.

Reacting to this today, Tee Keat said he had never even contemplated calling it quits.

“I don't know what he said, I was then not watching TV, but suffice to say I'm appreciative of any kind deeds at resolving the party crisis.

“But so far to my understanding and also for your information, as far as I'm concerned, there has never been any contemplation (on my part) to call it quits. And so far nobody has approach me for anything," he told reporters after meeting with MCA delegates from Sabah's west coast division in Kota Kinabalu.

Chua: I'm always last

NONE Meanwhile, former MCA deputy president Dr Chua Soi Lek ( right ) who is expected to vie for the MCA top party post on March 28, said he would not rush into making any announcements without getting feedback from the party central delegates.

“If you look at the history of MCA, every time there’s a contest, I will always be one of those people last to announce. “I want to get delegates’ input before I make my final decision. This is to respect the central delegates,” said Chua, also in Kota Kinabalu.

He added that Kota Kinabalu was his last stop in meeting central delegates and that he would be making his announcement "when the time is right".

Asked on speculation that he might go up against Tee Keat and Ka Ting for the president’s post, Chua said: “Nobody can stop people from speculating. I’m looking at various options (posts to contest).”

Asked whether there were individuals who approached him to make a compromise regarding his possible candidacy for the president’s post, Chua said: “Nobody has approached me. Even just now I met Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat as I arrived, we exchanged greetings. He asked how things were going with me. I said OK,” he said.