Speech by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary – General and MP for Kota Melaka, Lim Kit Siang, at the DAP Save Bukit 10,000 – People Dinner held in Cheras, Kuala Lumpur on Sunday, 28th Oct. 1984 at 8.30 p.m.
Tan Koon Swan MCA faction is sacrificing Bukit China to get UMNO help and support to solve the MCA power struggle
When the DAP first launched the Save Bukit China ‘Thousand – Mile Marathon Walk’ to bring the 300,000 Save Bukit China mass signature to the 10,000 – People Save Bukit China dinner in Kuala Lumpur and the 5,000 –People Gathering in Malacca on Tuesday, 30th Oct. 1984, for them to be eventually submitted to the Cheng Hoon Teng Temple Committee, the Bukit China trustees, Save Bukit China walkers at Alor Star on 19th Oct. were harassed and arrested by the Police.
But as I said on that day, no police harassment would stop the Save Bukit China ‘Thousand – Mile Marathon Walk’ to demonstrate the determination, will – power and stamina of Malaysians who are committed to a long – term struggle to preserve Bukit China as a living symbol of the historic, cultural, religious, political and citizenship rights of Malaysians, in particular the five million Malaysian Chinese in the country. If necessary, the thousand of Save Bukit China Marathon walkers of the ‘Thousand Mile Walk’ are prepared to be arrested by the Police throughout the country in the three main and numerous subsidiary routes to demonstrate and assert their right to freedom of expression of their strong feelings over the Bukit China issue.
It is the great misfortunte of the nation and in particular of the Chinese community that while throughout the country, Malaysians and in particular the Malaysian Chinese, are responding to the ‘Save Bukit China’ campaign, either in sighing the 300,000 Save Bukit China mass signature petition, or participating in Save Bukit China ‘walks or jogs’ ‘cyclethons’ or ‘ ceramahs’, and giving encouragement to the Save Bukit China Thousand Mile Marathon Walk, the 10,000 – Save Bukit China Dinner in Kuala Lumpur and the 5,000 – People Gathering in Malacca on Oct. 30, there is a group claiming to be the real champions of the Chinese who are actively undermining and subverting the ‘Save Bukit China’ campaign.
I am refering to the Tan Koon Swan MCA faction, which held a two – day policy meeting at Genting Highlands on Oct. 20 and 21. I was very interested on this meeting, not from the point of view of the Neo Yee Pan – Tan Koon Swan power struggle in the MCA, but to find out conclusively and definitively the official Tan Koon Swan MCA faction stand on Bukit China.
For about five months, the Malacca Tan Koon Swan MCA faction led by Chan Teck Chan, Ng Peng Huay and Lim Soo Kiang, had blatantly and unashamedly acted as the front organisation of the Malacca Chief Minister, Datuk Abdul Rahim Thamby Cik, to drum up support in the Chinese community for support for the Malacca Chief Minister’s plan to level and develop Bukit China.
The Tan Koon Swan MCA Malacca faction even resorted to the character assassination of the opponents of the Malacca Chief Minister’s Bukit China plan by denouncing them as ‘traitors’ of the race’ as Cheng Hoon Teng trustees were denounced by Ng Peng Huay in the Malacca Assembly on July 24.
The Tan Koon Swan MCA Malacca faction collaborated closely with the Malacca Chief Minister to work out and implement strategies which could be used to remove opposition in Chinese community against the government’s Bukit China plan, as in the $2 million demand for quit rent, arrears and late payment fines for 16 years; the ‘optionless’ so – called three proposals for the development of Bukit China which denies Cheng Hoon Teng Temple and the Chinese community their centuries – old ownership right over Bukit China; the two development plans for Bukit China as disclosed by the Malacca Chief Minister at his press conference on Sept. 12; the gazette notification of government intention to acquire 104 – acre Bukit China for ‘road purpose’; etc.
All this while, however, there is some uncertainty as to whether Tan Koon Swan and the official Tan Koon Swan MCA faction fully supported the Tan Koon Swan Malacca MCA faction’s statements and actions which were fully against the mainstream of Chinese community aspirations with regard to the Bukit China issue.
There was one school of thought that the Malacca Tan Koon Swan MCA faction led by Chan Teck Chan, Ng Peng Huay and Lim Soo Kiang, was acting on its own with-out consultation or consent from Tan Koon Swan or the national Tan Koon Swan MCA faction and that Tan Koon Swan was ‘trapped’ by Chan Teck Chan. This school of thought would reflect very badly on Tan Koon Swan’s political leadership for if a leader could be trapped by his subordinate into taking a position openly at war with the aspirations of the Chinese community, how could he be trusted with greater responsibilities and powers in future?
The other school of thought was that Tan Koon Swan and the his faction had not authorised or approved the statements and actions of Chan Teck Chan, Ng Peng Huay and Lim Soo Kiang in Malacca, and that it is unfair to hold him and the faction responsible for the individual actions of three irresponsible persons in Malacca.
The ‘Save the Party’ meeting at Genting Highlands on Oct. 20 and 21 was important to decide whether the Bukit China stand of Chan Teck Chan, Ng Peng Huay and Lim Soo Kian, were their individual actions unrepresentative of the Tan Koon Swan MCA faction, or it had in fact been made in the name and with the authority and approval of the Tan Koon Swan MCA faction and Tan Koon Swan himself.
The announcement by Tan Koon Swan at Genting Highlands on the Bukit China issue tantamount to a ‘authorisation’, approval and ratification’ of every action and statement made by Chan Teck Chan, Ng Peng Huay, Lim Soo Kiang of the Tan Koon Swan Malacca MCA faction, and there could be no more dispute or doubt whatsoever that the Tan Koon Swan faction is fully behind the five – month old operations of the Chan Teck Chan group to mobilise Chinese community support for the Malacca Chief Minister’s Bukit China plan.