Ghaffar Baba might as well be appointed Acting MCA President if the MCA ad hoc committee is to run MCA

Speech by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary- General and MP for Kota Melaka, Lim Kit Siang, at the national meeting of DAP State Organising Secretaries held at DAP Hqrs in Petaling Jaya on Sunday, August 25th 1985 at 10 a.m.

Ghaffar Baba might as well be appointed Acting MCA President if the MCA ad hoc committee is to run MCA

The suggestion by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamed, that the MCA ad hoc committee headed by Ghaffar Baba should now run the A, is most shocking.

If the MCA ad hoc committee is to run the MCA, Ghaffar Baba might as well be appointed Acting MCA President. After all, there are now two Acting MCA Presidents and another one would not make much of a difference. There are three MCA operating headquarters — and the opening of a fourt one at Kewangan Komplex (Ghaffar’s office) will also not bring much change.after the Barisan Nasional Supreme Council meeting of August 17, where Neo Yee Pan’s expulsion from he Cabinet was announced and the granting of three—month period to MCA to solve its crisis, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir said that he would not give opinions as to how to solve the MCA crisis, as he would like the MCA members to resolve things themselves. It would appear that Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir has changed his mind.

If the ad hoc committee, agreed on by the two factions of Neo Yee Pan and Tan Koon Swan as a out—of—court settlement in May 1985, is to take over the entire MCA affairs, it would not only exceed the terms of reference for the setting up of the ad hoc committee, it would usurp the powers of the Central Executive Committee of MCA and even the MCA Party Constitution.

The ad hoc committee’s legality could be challenged by any MCA member who is not a direct signatory to the out—of—court settlement, which binds only the direct parties, namely Tan Koon Swan, Lee Kim Sai, Ling Liong Sik, Kee Yong Wee and Kok Wee Kiat as plaintiffs s and Neo Yee Pan, Mak Hon Kam, Chong Hon Nyan, Chin Chon Ngian and Rosemary Chong as defendants.

In suggesting that the ad hoc committee should run the MCA, is Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir suggesting that the Ghaffar Baba and the ad hoc committee should evict Neo Yee Pan from headquarters, probably appoint Ghaffar Baba temporarily to occupy Neo’ s Ministerial post and decide on MCA party policies and programmes?

Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir also said yesterday that he did not have to recognise any MCA faction, but it is clear from the Television and Radio coverage, that the government recognises Mak Hon Kam as the rightful Acting President and Tan Tiong Hong as the rightful Secretary— General.

Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir is trying to interfere in MCA affairs without being seen to be doing so, which he is not succeeding.

DAP gravely concerned about USM discontent by academic staff

The DAP is gravely concerned by reports that at least 70 per cent of the Universiti Sains Malaysia’s academic staff have only three years of teaching experience and senior lecturers, frustrated at being passed over for promotion, will be leaving soon.

I call on the Minister of Education, Abdullah Badawi, to set up an independent committee of inquiry into inquire into the discontent of the USM academic staff, for adademic standards and excellence at USM must not be compromised by perverse university staff promotion policy. Complaints that academic appointments are not based strictly on academic qualifications and teaching experience must be rectified, as otherwise, it would lead not only to low morale among the university lecturers, university standards would immediately suffer and tarnishing the reputation of USM.