An Umno leader has urged MCA to remain a loyal partner in Barisan Nasional (BN) and to reflect on its declining support from the Chinese community.
Umno Supreme Council member Puad Zarkashi was responding to MCA secretary-general Chong Sin Woon who had urged the party to take charge of its destiny if BN continued to drag its feet over a clear direction for the coalition.
“We sympathise with MCA. However, MCA should not blame BN for this.
“MCA must ask itself: why has support for the party from the Chinese community declined? Why did MCA win only two (parliamentary) seats in the 15th general election (GE15)? This has nothing to do with BN,” Puad said in a Facebook post.
MCA’s two parliamentary seats – Ayer Hitam and Tanjung Piai – were won by party president Wee Ka Siong and vice-president Wee Jeck Seng respectively.
Puad said BN had contested alone at the nationwide polls in 2022 and only joined forces with Pakatan Harapan (PH) and others later to form the unity government.
The Rengit assemblyman also said that Johor MCA Youth chief Heng Zhi Li was even more misguided for saying that the BN-PH cooperation was damaging Umno‘s future.
“Umno’s real decline began after BN’s defeat in the 2018 general election – and Umno did not blame BN.
“Umno has since made a comeback. If anyone wants to claim that the party is in decline, look at the by-elections in Nenggiri, Mahkota, and Ayer Kuning. That’s why MCA needs to remain resilient,” Puad said.
Heng yesterday said that PH was not saving BN but dismantling it from within, and that blind cooperation would only render BN parties politically irrelevant.
He said recent comments by Johor Umno Youth chief Noor Azleen Ambros – who criticised Chong for urging the Chinese-based party to chart its own path – put BN in a “lower and subordinate position”.
Puad urged MCA to focus on its roles and positions in Johor, Melaka, Perak, and Pahang.
“Prove your excellence and win back public support,” he said.
“Umno will continue to defend BN. MCA, MIC, and Friends of BN remain Umno’s loyal partners. The BN-PH cooperation is for the people’s welfare and to ensure a stable government.”
He also said that the path forward for BN was clear: the coalition must prove that it listens to the advice of the Malay Rulers, remains committed, and upholds moderation.
