MCA and Gerakan leaders should stop saying one thing publicly and doing the opposite inside BN meetings, as in their support of the UMNO Youth proposal for revival of NEP at the Barisan Nasional Youth special meeting on Wednesday

Speech

at the Permatang Tinggi DAP Branch Anniversary Dinner

by Lim Kit Siang  

(Penang, Friday): MCA and Gerakan leaders should stop saying one thing publicly and doing the opposite inside BN meetings, as in their support of the UMNO Youth proposal for revival of NEP at the Barisan Nasional Youth special meeting on Wednesday MCA and Gerakan leaders should stop saying one thing publicly and doing the opposite inside Barisan Nasional  meetings, as in their support of the UMNO Youth proposal for revival of the New Economic Policy (NEP) at the Barisan Nasional Youth special meeting on Wednesday.

Immediately after the UMNO Youth Assembly the previous Wednesday, where UMNO Youth leader Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein called for the revival of the New Economic Policy, which was followed two days later by the speech of  the Deputy UMNO Youth leader Khairy Jamaluddin elaborating on the UMNO Youth motion at the UMNO General Assembly, MCA and Gerakan leaders, both at the national and youth levels, publicly expressed their criticism and opposition.

However, when UMNO Youth convened a special meeting of the Barisan Nasional Youth two days ago, Khairy was able to announce after the two-hour  meeting that all the youth movements of the Barisan Nasional component parties, including MCA and Gerakan, are in full support of UMNO Youth’s call for the revival of the New Economic Policy as it is “a national agenda for all Malaysians”.

Another example of MCA and Gerakan leaders saying one thing publicly but doing the exact opposite inside Barisan Nasional meetings is the issue of Malaysia as an Islamic State.

MCA and Gerakan leaders had falsely accused the DAP of supporting PAS to turn Malaysia into an Islamic State, but when the then Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad announced at the Gerakan national
delegates conference on Sept. 29, 2001 that Malaysia was an Islamic State, MCA and Gerakan leaders gave full support to this unconstitutional declaration when the Barisan Nasional Supreme Council was convened to give it endorsement.

As a result, no MCA or Gerakan leader, whether at national or youth level, dare to publicly defend the Merdeka “social contract” reached by the forefathers of all communities and written into the 1957 Merdeka Constitution, the 1963 Malaysia Agreement and the 1970 Rukunegara that Malaysia is a democratic, secular and multi-religious nation with Islam as the official religion but not an Islamic State.

It has reached a stage where DAP Members of Parliament  have to speak up in Parliament on behalf of MCA, Gerakan, MIC, SUPP, PBS,  the Sabah and Sarawakian parliamentarians,  as these Barisan Nasional MPs agree with DAP that Malaysia was never conceived by our forefathers as  an Islamic State but none of them dare to stand up in Parliament to speak the truth and go against official Barisan Nasional policy.

In fact, DAP MPs are also speaking up not only on behalf of non-Muslim Malaysians, but also the Malays and Muslims in Malaysia, as the majority are moderate Muslims who do not agree but dare not express their dismay at the unhealthy competition between PAS and UMNO to make Malaysia an Islamic State.

MCA and Gerakan leaders, both national and youth, should not make the same colossal mistake they had done in their support of the “929 Declaration” by Mahathir on Sept. 29, 2001 that Malaysia is an Islamic State in again giving obedient and unthinking support to the UMNO Youth demand for the revival of the New Economic Policy inside Barisan Nasional meetings.    

(29/07/2005)