by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary- General and MP for Tanjung, in Petaling Jaya on Sunday, 5th May 1991:
Call on Liong Sik to secure Cabinet approval on Wednesday for the Malaysian Chinese Cultural City proposal.
The top MCA leadership’s reaction to the attack by the UMNO Secretary- General, Datuk Mohamed Rahmat, on the Malaysian Chinese Cultural City proposal is oncoming more and more mystitying.
The first MCA reaction came from the MCA Deputy President, Datuk Lee Kim Sai, who disowned the Malaysian Chinese Cultural City idea and said it had nothing to do with the MCA.
This evaelon tactic stopped when the MCA leadership waas reminded that it was the MCA President, Datuk Ling Liong Sik, who announced the Malaysian Chinese Cultural City proposal as a MCA project at the 42nd MCA party anniversary celebrations.
Now the MCA President, Datuk Ling Liong Sik, claimed that the Malaysian Chinese Cultural City had been discussed with the top UMNO leaders who had accepted and endured it.
If this is the case, any is the UMNO Secretary- General, Datuk Mohamed Rahmat, openly attacking the MCA for wanting to create a ‘Chinatown’ in Malaysia. Or is Liong Sik suggesting that Datuk Mohamed Rahmat does not belong to the UMNO top leadership?
And when did Liong Sik discuss the idea of the Malaysia Chinese Cultural City with the top UMNO leaders? Is it after the attack by Datuk Mohamed Rahmat or before. And do these ‘top UMNO leaders’ include Dr. Mahathir Mohamad and Ghafar Baba?
If the top UMNO leadership had given approval for the Malaysian Cultural City idea, why can’t Liong Sik get either Dr. Mahathir or Ghafar to come out publicly to endorse the proposal?
In order to prevent this issue from being abused by irresponsible politicians to aroust emotions to turn themselves into communal or cultural champions, Liong Sik should be able the Malaysian Chinese Cultural City proposal at Wednesday’s Cabinet meeting and to secure formal approval so that the incipient controversy over the Malaysian Chinese Cultural City could be nipped in the bud.
If Liong Sik’s claim that the top UMNO and Barisan Nasional leadership had discussed and accepted the Malaysian Chinese Cultural City proposal, then there should be no difficulty in getting such a formal Cabinet approval on Wednesday and for an announcement to be made.
If Liong Sik dare not table the proposal at Wednesday’s Cabinet meeting, then his assertion that the top UMNO and Barisan Nasional leadership had given approval to the Malaysian Chinese Cultural City proposal is the latest of the long catalogue of empty MCA claims.