The top echelon in the country’s most widely-circulated English daily The Star can expect more drama as MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek tightens his grip on the party-owned media.

Speculation is rife among industry insiders that The Edge ’s editor-in-chief Ho Kay Tat is expected to be roped into The Star as an executive director.

The daily currently has three executive directors - they being editor-in-chief Wong Chun Wai, executive deputy chairperson Clement Hii and Ng Beng Lye.

NONE Ho ( right ) is expected to occupy one of the two executive director positions that are to be vacated by Hii and Ng.

There are initially no changes expected in editorial operations with Wong retaining his current position and possibly moving further up The Star hierarchy.

Both sides have been unwilling to comment. While Ho could not be reached for comment, Wong has remained mum.

"I’m unable to respond. This is beyond me. You will have to call the higher-ups," said Wong when contacted.

If the expected moves manifest themselves, it would mean that Wong’s position in the group will be strengthened and Ho, who has a reputation as having the Midas touch for news organisations, will help restore professionalism at the The Star.

The daily has suffered a setback in terms of reader perception following the MCA presidential elections early this year when the paper was seen to be ‘taking sides’ in the three-cornered fight between Chua, incumbent Ong Tee Keat and former president Ong Ka Ting.

Political muscle flexing

The management reshuffle may also pave the way for future editorial policy changes which have been largely none existent since the reign of the eighth MCA party president, Dr Ling Liong Sik, who ruled from 1986 to 2003.

Critics, however, say that Chua is beset with a rare dilemma.

He had initially pledged in his ‘Humble Ant’ presidential manifesto to give The Star managerial independence and editorial autonomy but at the same time he will have to flex his political muscle over the MCA-owned Star Publications Berhad which is a RM2 billion cash cow.

This is where Ho comes into The Star picture, likely to be sometime after the company’s annual general meeting to be held on May 24.

mca and the star newspaper His entry is expected to create a seismic shift. But rumour of his move has been around for several years, even during former MCA president Ong Tee Keat’s era in 2008.

Previously the boss of The Sun before its Berjaya Corporation takeover two years ago, Ho managed to turn the free daily around from a loss-making company into the nation’s secondmost widely circulated English daily.

Ho has been in the journalism industry for 24 years beginning his career with the New Straits Times and subsequently becoming the economic correspondent for Reuters ’ Kuala Lumpur Bureau in 1990 before moving to Singapore Business Times in 1994.

He joined The Edge initially as editor in August 1996 before moving up the ranks to becoming managing director back in 2006. However, he gave up that position in 2009 but remains as editor-in-chief.

More new faces in The Star

The entry of Ho is just one of the many changes Chua is expected to put in place in The Star.

It was previously reported that Hii and Ng will also be replaced . They were appointed to the board by Ong’s men back in January 2009.

NONE Word in the industry grapevine is that managing director of Royal Selangor International (formerly Selangor Pewter) Yong Poh Kon ( left ) will be taking over Hii’s position.

Yong, a highly-respected corporate figure, in no stranger to MCA. He once led the party's think-tank - the Institute of Strategic and Policy Analysis (Insap)- during former president Tan Koon Swan's era.

But he has since put politics on the backburner and concentrated on the corporate world instead.

He also sat in on many government and private consultative bodies including Bank Negara, Pemudah, the National Action Committee on the Industrial Master Plan, the National Economic Consultative Council (NECC) and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) advisory board.

Interestingly, he is also an economic advisor to Selangor Pakatan Rakyat government.