MCA's fate in Johor hinges on performance in GE14: Wee Ka Siong

MCA deputy president Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong said the party's fate hinges very much on its polls performance in Johor.
And it would be a shot in the arm for MCA if it is to contest the Gelang Patah parliamentary seat in the 14th general election (GE14), he opined.
In GE13, much to the dismay of party members, Gelang Patah, a seat traditionally contested by MCA, was allocated to Umno whose candidate, then mentri besar Tan Sri Abdul Ghani Othman, lost to DAP strongman Lim Kit Siang.
In an interview with Sin Chew Daily published today, Wee, who is also Johor MCA chief, said "loaning out" Gelang Patah had resulted in a vicious circle, which was one of the reasons that the party did poorly in the state.
"Many party members were unable to accept it (the loaning out of Gelang Patah), believing that the move had a negative effect. (To make matters worse) Skudai, the state seat traditionally contested by Gerakan where the party had been working very hard to win the people's support, was allocated to MCA.
"In the coming general election, when MCA re-contests Gelang Patah, Skudai should be given back to Gerakan," he said.
He said apart from an announcement by the mentri besar, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak had clearly hinted to MCA leadership that come GE14, MCA will contest Gelang Patah, where Chinese and Indians make up two-thirds of the electorate.
"Skudai will be handed back to Gerakan and Nusajaya (which was allocated to MCA in exchange for Gelang Patah) will be contested by Umno," he said, describing it as a win-win arrangement for all three parties.
Asked to comment on the possibility of a Malay political tsunami in Johor following the setting up of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia by former deputy prime minister and former Umno No. 2 Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, Wee believed the former Johor Umno chief still commands influence that varies according to different parts (northern, central and southern) of the state but not enough to cause a political tsunami.