In a bid to maintain the competitiveness and diversity in the local Chinese press following the Nanyang Press takeover by MCA, some quarters are planning to revive a few defunct Chinese dailies, sources told malaysiakini today.

A source who spoke on condition of anonymity said the permits for defunct Chinese dailies Thung Pau , Kin Kwok Daily News and Sin Pin Jit Poh are still valid even though they have ceased operations about a decade ago.

The Singapore Zaobao Online reported today that Kin Kwok Daily News and Thung Pau are the two dailies that are likely to be restored should the plan come to fruition.

Established in 1940, Kin Kwok closed down in 1986 while Thung Pau existed from 1957 to 1994.

Campaign Against Takeover by MCA (CAT) chairperson Tang Ah Chai voiced his doubts over the possibility of a comeback for Kin Kwok , saying that a huge investment capital is needed for such a venture.

"Without a strong economic base, the paper would not be able to survive, let alone compete with Sin Chew Jit Poh and Nanyang Press," said Tang.

According to another source, Thung Pau owner, Sin Heap Lee group, would like to sell its publication permit at a price which would compensate for the losses the group incurred in running the paper during the early 1990s, amounting to around RM40 million.

Nonetheless, the source added, "It is worthless for anyone to buy a permit for a newspaper which no longer has a readership."

However, Tang disagreed, saying that as long as the revived Chinese daily is profitable, the RM40 million spent will be worth it. He added that the new owner would have to grin and bear the competition during the early stages of operation.

The source admitted that a boycott campaign against the four major Chinese dailies is not the solution to the controversial Nanyang Press takeover. Neither is the ambiguous, half-hearted stand against rival company Sin Chew Jit Poh for the public still needs to obtain information from the press.

He said the Chinese community should instead target at pressing the MCA to relinquish its stake and control over Nanyang Press.

Boycott

Immediately after the May 28 takeover of Nanyang Press by MCA's investment arm Huaren Holdings in a controversial RM230 million deal, more than 300 Chinese organisations launched a boycott campaign against the China Press and Nanyang Siang Pau , the second and third largest Chinese dailies in the country.

The deal sparked off strong objections from the Chinese community as well as rank-and-file MCA party members.

A group of writers had vowed to stop contributing articles to the four dailies, causing a drop in the quality of the opinion pieces contained.