MCA and Gerakan's intention to explore the possibility of merging to strengthen the Barisan Nasional (BN) has been welcomed by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

"It's good if they intend to merge, it's up to them how they go about doing it," Bernama quoted him as saying in Kuala Lumpur today.

Abdullah, who is also BN chairman, said a merger would be good for the BN as a whole.

On Thursday, MCA president Ong Ka Ting and Gerakan president Lim Keng Yaik expressed the intention for the two parties to merge at a dinner jointly organised by leaders of the two BN components.

Ong had said that the MCA was prepared to merge with Gerakan as the two parties must cooperate to strengthen the BN while Lim said that the cooperation was not meant to pressure anyone but was in the BN's political interest.

When asked what would happen to the non-Chinese Geraka members if the two parties were to merge, Abdullah said the two parties would have to sort out the matter.

Step by step

Meanwhile, Bernama also reported Dr Lim as saying today that a merger between Gerakan and MCA is not going to happen before the next general election.

He said the process needed to be done step by step with the acceptance of party leaders and grassroots members of the two parties.

"The so-called MCA-Gerakan merger, it is a step in the future. But anything is possible. We must allow time to develop this concept, so there's a lot of speculation, who is going to be dissolved, who is going to be absorbed, how is the new party going to be... forget about all this.

"It is an intention, it will develop over time, but it definitely is not going to happen before the next general election," Lim added.

Yesterday, several political observers interviewed by malaysiakini poured cold water on the proposed merger.

They felt that such a plan was "impossible" to implement given the diverse background of the two parties. One even called the proposal a "political gimmick"