YOURSAY | ‘The parties have nothing to fear if they have the rakyat’s support.’

Kit Siang: DAP not out to eliminate MCA, Gerakan, but…

David Dass: Umno, MCA and MIC might have been relevant at one point in time when the country was negotiating its independence from British rule. It was necessary for the three major communities to come together then and to agree on the terms for Independence.

The Chinese and Indians were here in large numbers. Their presence in Malaya then was permanent. They were not going back to China and India respectively. They were needed in the country to continue doing the jobs that they were doing.

After the Second World War, the British had lost their appetite for colonial rule and with American encouragement were freeing their colonies one by one.

It was clear to the British and to the leaders of the three communities that a precondition to independence was the agreement of the three communities to a constitution that secured the interests of all three communities.

With the assistance of the Reid Commission and experts in constitutional law and draftsmanship, a constitution was agreed upon. At independence and for a while afterwards, the leaders of Umno, the MCA and MIC ruled as equal partners of the then-young nation.

But after 1971, the situation began to change. After the riots of 1969, the Malay leadership felt a need to accelerate the development of the Malays.

In 1971, the New Economic Policy was formulated and became the blueprint for the development of the Malay community. When Mahathir became prime minister, many of his ideas as set out in his ‘The Malay Dilemma’ became government policy.

For the non-Malays, assistance to the Malays was never the issue. It was the virtual exclusion of the non-Malays from government policy and action that created resentment. In time, Malays became 95 percent of the civil service and the armed forces.

The more enterprising Chinese were able to a significant extent fend for themselves outside of government. Indians and other minorities could not do so, and either left the country or languished on the margins of society.

Increasingly, leaders of the MCA and MIC found themselves simply echoing policies formulated by their Malay colleagues in cabinet, especially the formidable Mahathir.

At the top echelon of Malaysian society, in business as well as politics, there was harmony. As Mahathir was often heard to say - contracts given to Malays were often subcontracted to Chinese.

But in the lower reaches of Malaysian society, the Chinese, Indians, and indigenous people of Sabah and Sarawak did not do so well.

There continued to be many poor Malay households as well. Many Chinese felt that they were being punished for working hard and were not sufficiently appreciated for the taxes they paid and the role they played in developing the country.

Many of our talented young people have left the country, and many others plan to go as well. Many Chinese and Indians feel that their leaders in MCA, Gerakan and MIC have failed them.

There is also an increasing realisation among Malaysians, young and old, that we must come together as Malaysians and collectively work for the nation and all its people.

There is the recognition that we cannot continue to be divided by race, religion and class. And there is the growing belief that race-based political parties must go.

Clever Voter: DAP stalwart Lim Kit Siang is right. DAP has no intention to eliminate MCA or Gerakan. Failure to embrace change is a major reason explaining why both MCA and Gerakan will self-destruct.

It is not a deliberate policy of DAP to protect just Chinese Malaysians, but all Malaysians, who suffer injustice from discriminatory policies of BN for which both MCA and Gerakan are to be blamed.

Years of association with a scandal-tainted coalition is not something one can be proud of, yet they have all the time to find faults including cracks in monsoon drains. Where it matters, they chose to remain silent.

What is DAP's reason for wanting to eliminate MCA, Gerakan?

Anonymous #19098644: Democracy means a contest between different candidates and parties. If PKR, Bersatu or Amanah or DAP contest a seat against MCA or Gerakan and defeat the MCA or Gerakan candidate, does it mean that they should not contest and let MCA win uncontested?

What kind of logic and reasoning does MCA publicity spokesperson Ti Lian Ker have?

If MCA is relevant and has the support of the rakyat, then it will welcome all contenders and show that it can defeat them and thus providing it with legitimacy.

Beman: Yes, it is not a question of DAP wanting to eliminate MCA or Gerakan.

Why should any political party participate in an election to help their rivals win? Should DAP help MCA or Gerakan to win votes in elections? Or should MCA help DAP?

Whether MCA and Gerakan are eliminated or not is not up to DAP. They can only be eliminated by Malaysian voters, and they do not have to worry about being eliminated if they have stayed relevant and are sincere about what is best for Malaysia and Malaysians.

Clever Voter: This is not about eliminating MCA in the same way as destroying a race.

MCA, given its position in the coalition, would be a direct competitor for the same voters. DAP historically championed the causes of the Chinese Malaysians because they were allegedly unfairly treated. This pits both parties head on.

Ti is seeking to gain sympathy from voters, same as they did previously. The same audience will not buy it.

Trust is important. Once broken, that's it. No one will shed a tear. Death means the party has to be buried or reborn to be something else.

Matusa: "What is DAP's reason for wanting to eliminate MCA, Gerakan?" The simple answer - votes.

MCA and Gerakan have lost their raison d'etre. In the eyes of Chinese voters, both parties have become Umno's representatives to the Chinese community.

They don't represent Chinese Malaysian interests. Umno uses them to bait Chinese votes. Without some Chinese votes, Umno will likely lose even in Malay-majority seats, where the races are tight.

So, in order to deny Umno even a single Chinese vote, both MCA and Gerakan must fold.

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