MCA faces tough battle to regain Chinese support
With less than three years to go before the next general election, MCA is finding the task of wooing the Chinese community increasingly onerous.
Not surprisingly, it has set its sights on boosting its support base by winning over the hearts and minds of fence-sitters and newly-registered voters.
While its 62nd annual general meeting (AGM) over the weekend served as an ideal platform for the party to highlight the various strategies it has taken to improve its electoral performance, the meeting also served as an opportunity for the party's 1,761 delegates to touch base and renew their commitment to reach out to the Chinese community.
MCA, which is among BN's main component parties, is realistic enough to realise that it has to work really hard to change the public's perception and remain relevant in line with the changes taking place in the nation's political landscape.
Still reeling from the shock of its dismal performance in the 13th General Election (GE13) in 2013, the party is aware that regaining the people's support will be no walk in the park.
In his policy address at the opening of the AGM, party president Liow Tiong Lai ( photo ) urged all members to support the MCA Transformation Plan, which consists of three phases.
The first two phases, themed 'Stronger together' and 'Harnessing diversity' were launched last year, while the third phase, focusing on 10 economic strategies, was launched recently.
Liow said in order for the MCA to stage a comeback and continue with its struggle alongside BN, it has no choice but to produce tangible changes by undertaking long-term strategies.
During GE13, the party only managed to win seven parliamentary and 11 state seats, compared with the 15 parliamentary and 32 state seats it secured in the 2008 general election.
Over the weekend, several delegates also drove home the importance of making use of social media - long dominated by the opposition to spread their propaganda - to reach out to Internet-savvy members of the public.
The delegates urged party leaders to use the various social media platforms to interact with the people and counter the allegations hurled against the BN and MCA by opposition parties.
Resolve issues faced by the Chinese community
Universiti Putra Malaysia associate professor Mohd Izani Mohd Zain said the MCA should never lose focus of its struggle which was to resolve the various issues confronting the Chinese community.
He said the MCA's failure to act promptly would result in the opposition "hijacking" the issues concerned and turning them into political fodder, which could tarnish the BN component party's reputation and image.
"Currently, a majority of the Chinese support the DAP, which has succeeded in manipulating the principles of democracy and citizens' rights to gain the sympathy of the community.
"MCA must take care of the interests of the Chinese, as well as try to minimise its internal strife as it can be detrimental to the party," he told Bernama .
He added that the MCA must endeavour to wrest the support of the Chinese from the DAP as the community had little to gain from being associated with the opposition party.
59 resolutions passed
A total of 59 resolutions were tabled and passed unanimously during the two-day AGM. 17 resolutions were passed by MCA Youth, 23 by the Wanita wing and 19 by the main wing.
All three had several resolutions in common, including rejecting the proposed implementation of the hudud law by PAS; urging the government to take steps to improve the value of the ringgit; rejecting extremism; and rejecting calls to abolish vernacular schools.
The Youth wing also passed resolutions urging the government to enact legislation to oversee political donations to prevent bribery and abuse of power, and to reduce the income tax rate to 18 per cent, from the existing 25 percent.
Wanita MCA, meanwhile, passed resolutions seeking more power for the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and tighter monitoring of online media to ensure that harmony and stability prevailed.
It also urged the Attorney-General's Chambers not to be selective when taking action against those who fan racial sentiments.
The main wing, on its part, passed resolutions seeking more stringent action against parties which trigger racial issues, and more effective monitoring and review of the goods and services tax.
It also sought better Malaysia-China cooperation to enable the Malaysian business community to tap greater business opportunities.
- Bernama
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