The Gopeng parliamentary seat in Perak is under scrutiny as incumbent Dr Ting Chew Peh makes way after a tenure of five terms. The question is, which of MCA’s aspirants will fill his shoes?

ong ka chuan Deputy Youth chief Ling Hee Leong is said to be in the running after party secretary-general Ong Ka Chuan (photo) apparently opted to contest in the Barisan Nasional (BN) parliamentary stronghold of Tanjong Malim.

However, Ka Chuan was later reported as saying that he wishes to “bring development to the Kinta Valley”, which is being interpreted as a hint that he may contest in Gopeng after all as it is one of five federal seats there.

ting chew peh interview 190208 firm Ting’s response was instant and ascerbic - he said Gopeng is not a “reject shop” that accepts candidates previously rejected by voters, and urged the party to send in a new face whom he would support.

This was clear reference to Ka Chuan, who had lost to DAP’s Fong Po Kuan in the Baru Gajah parliamentary seat in 2004 by 7,927 votes.

Complicating matters is that Ting and Ka Chuan belong to different factions in MCA.

Ting had challenged Chan Kong Choy for the post of deputy president in the last party election, but lost. He was seen as a rival to the current leadership of Ka Chuan, his brother and party president Ka Ting, as well as Chan.

ling hee leong 02 Hee Leong (photo) , son of the former president Dr Ling Liong Sik, is aligned to Ting. Gopeng has been seen as suitable for Hee Leong’s electoral debut, as he has been actively campaigning there.

In an interview with Malaysiakini yesterday, Ting had advice for Ka Chuan - to contest in a more difficult seat, such as Batu Gajah, if he really wants to 'bring development' to Perak.

fong poh kuan “Gopeng is the safest of the five parliamentary seats in the Kinta Valley. If Fong (photo) quits Batu Gajah (as she has announced), he should go back there. Stand up (at the spot) where you fell down. This is the healthy political culture of our party,” said Ting.

He pointed out that the party - including himself - has frequently criticised the DAP for not being able to pick itself up after a failure and for behaving like a soldier running away from the battlefield.

“Both Kampar MP Hew See Yong and Teja state assembly person Ho Wai Cheong lost in the 1990 general election and worked really hard after their defeat. They won the seats five years later,” Ting said.

Chance in Batu Gajah

Ting further said that Batu Gajah, without Fong, could increase Ka Chuan’s chances should he contest the seat.

ting chew peh interview 190208 backfire “The composition of constituents has changed after the last election (in 2004). This will favour a BN candidate. Furthermore, Ong has more resources (at his disposal since he is MCA) secretary-general.”

Expressing confidence that BN will retain Gopeng, he said the only uncertainty is the size of the majority vote, which could be bigger or smaller than in the previous outing.

Ting stressed the importance of fielding new faces, but said he has no particular favourite in mind.

“I will support any new candidate, including Hee Leong, so long as he or she has potential and is willing to work hard. We have always emphasised that the older generation should be replaced by young ones. (So) don’t field any candidate who is as old or older than I am,” he said.

“I also hope BN won’t field any candidate who had lost in other constituencies.”

The Kinta Valley is predominantly Chinese in terms of voter composition. MCA holds two seats - Gopeng and Kampar - while DAP controls Ipoh Timor, Ipoh Barat and Batu Gajah.

Last Sunday, however, the Batu Gajah incumbent declared that she will not defend the seat, to DAP’s dismay.