PETALING JAYA: MCA President Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong said criticism keeps MCA humble, in response to DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke calling his party the "biggest loser" in Negri Sembilan.
In a Facebook post on Sunday (July 19), Dr Wee said Loke had every reason to be confident about DAP’s position in the state, as MCA had not won a single state seat there since 2013.
On the three seats MCA chose not to contest, Dr Wee said the party’s own assessment was that its chances were “simply too low” after heavy defeats there over several elections.
“There is no point pretending otherwise at the moment. But in the seven seats we are contesting, we believe we still have a fighting chance,” he said.
Dr Wee said nobody owed MCA a vote, and that after 13 years without a representative in the Negri Sembilan state assembly, the party had to stay humble, work harder and convince voters one by one. He said MCA was essentially starting again in the state and could not afford to be arrogant or take any voter for granted.
“All we can do is prove that, given the opportunity, MCA representatives can work hard, speak up and offer voters a credible alternative to the DAP representatives they have had for many years,” he said.
“So I genuinely thank Anthony Loke for constantly reminding everyone about MCA’s weaknesses. Criticism keeps us humble.”
Dr Wee said he was grateful to Johor voters for giving MCA the opportunity to win back three state seats last week, adding that he hoped Negri Sembilan voters would also consider giving the party another chance in a few seats.
On Sunday, Loke described MCA as the biggest loser in the electoral pact between Barisan Nasional and Perikatan Nasional, saying the party had given up its traditional seats of Lobak, Mambau and Lukut to Perikatan in exchange for straight fights elsewhere.
Speaking after a walkabout at the Seremban Central Market, Loke, who is also Negri Sembilan DAP chairman, sarcastically thanked Dr Wee for being “generous” in helping DAP by not contesting the three seats.
MCA is contesting Chennah, Bahau, Nilai, Temiang, Rahang, Chuah and Repah, with Chennah the only seat where it goes head-to-head with DAP. Loke is defending Chennah, which he has held since 2013, against Negri Sembilan MCA Youth chief Siow Kong Choon.
Polling is on Aug 1, with early voting on July 28.
