by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Tanjung, Lim Kit Siang, in Penang on Friday, June 11, 1993:
Let Liong Sik prove his claim that MCA had regained the confidence of the Malaysian Chinese by announcing at the Penang MCA State Delegates’ Convention tomorrow that he would return to Penang to contest for a parliamentary seat in the next general elections
MCA President, Datuk Dr. Ling Liong Sik, has claimed that the MCA had emerged from a period of multiple crisis to be stronger and more united.
Let Liong Sik prove his claim that MCA had regained the confidence of the Malaysian Chinese by announcing at the Penang MCA State Delegates’ Convention tomorrow that he would return to Penang to contest for a parliamentary seat in the next general elections.
Liong Sik left the former Mata Kuching (presently Bagan) parliamentary seat in Penang in 1986 general elections for the Labis parliamentary seat in Johore because he knew that he would have been defeated if he had re-contested in his old parliamentary seat in Penang.
Such an announcement that he would return to Penang to contest in the next general elections would be more meaningful than all his claims about MCA’s achievements and the trumpeting of MCA leaders that the DAP is fighting for political survival.
The MCA has four Cabinet Ministers and they should ensure that they are in the mainstream of the highest political decision-making process in the country, and not marginalized to deal with issues like the Langkawi project.
The four MCA Cabinet Ministers can demonstrate that they are in the mainstream of the highest political decision-making process by taking up the DAP proposal in Cabinet for the establishment of a Cabinet Committee to re-evaluate the position of Chinese language in Malaysia in keeping with Vision 2020 and its increasing international importance.
Challenge to Liong Sik to declare whether MCA Ministers support the ten DAP proposals for re-evaluation of Chinese language in Malaysia
In this connection, I challenge Liong Sik to publicly declare whether the four MCA Ministers support the ten ten DAP proposals for the re-evaluation of Chinese language in Malaysia, viz:
1. Full government recognition of the role played by Chinese education in Malaysia in nation-building and human resource development in the last 36 years since Merdeka;
2. In recognition of this contribution, government should make annual dollar-to-dollar grant to match public donations to Chinese Independent Secondary Schools and also for construction of the Dong Zhiao Zhong education centre – completely without any conditions attached;
3. Approval to allow Chinese Independent Secondary Schools to organize pre-university courses and twinning programmes with foreign universities;
4. Recognition of the Unified Examinations System of the Chinese Independent Secondary Schools;
5. Recognition of the Taiwan and Nantah university degrees and qualifications;
6. Allow Malaysian students to pursue higher studies in China;
7. Amend the Universities and University Colleges Act to remove the Ban on the establishment of private universities;
8. Reform of the national education system, from primary, secondary to university level to reflect the re-evaluation of the Chinese language in Malaysia;
9. Review and further amendments to the proposed Education Bill, not only to repeal Clauses 21(2) and 26A of the 1961 Education Act, but also the final objective to do away with Chinese education in Malaysia;
10. Posthumous restoration of citizenship to Lim Lian Geok and recognition of his great contribution not only to Chinese education, but also to Malaysian education and nation-building.
Tsu Koon should include in the Penang Yang di-Pertua Negeri’s policy speech tomorrow support for the re-evaluation of Chinese language in Malaysia
DAP also calls on Gerakan leaders, particularly those who had declared that they have a special mission to ‘attack into the Barisan Nasional to rectify Barisan Nasional’ loke Penang Chief Minister, Dr. Koh Tsu Koon, Penang State Exco member, Dr. Kang Chin Seng, to support the DAP’s ten proposals on the re-evaluation of the Chinese language in Malaysia.
In the policy speech to be delivered by the Yang di-Pertuan Negeri Penang when opening the Penang State Assembly tomorrow, Dr. Koh Tsi Koon should include a section expressing the Penang State Government’s support for the re-evaluation of the position of Chinese language in Malaysia because of its great contribution to nation-building and economic development especially in the international market-place.
The Penang Yang di Pertua Negeri’s speech at the opening of the Penang State Assembly is the state government’s policy speech, and if Dr. Koh Tsu Koon does not include such a section, then it will be another great disappointment to the people both of Penang and Malaysia!