The perception of the general public is that the conviction for Sodomy II, as Anwar’s second sodomy case has been labelled, had unfolded at a whirl-wind pace because it was aimed at stopping Anwar from contesting in the Kajang by-election and subsequently becoming the Menteri Besar of Selangor.
As such, the people have been pointing their fingers at the Barisan Nasional (BN) and its leader, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, who is perceived to be reaping the benefits from the whole incident.
Netizens have voiced their dissatisfaction at the Appeals Court decision by posting emotional and critical comments on Najib’s Facebook page.
As a component party of BN, MCA has a monumental campaign ahead in winning back the support of the Chinese voters in Kajang.
Former MCA vice-president Datuk Yap Pian Hon said that with Anwar’s conviction, there was much uncertainty in the by-election now.
“The MCA needs to face this ruling, and re-strategise its campaign, because we don’t know who their candidate is now, whether it is a man or a woman.
“Because of that, this will be a tough campaign for MCA,” Yap told fz.com.
MCA Wanita national vice chairman Ong Chong Swen believed that Pakatan Rakyat will play up the people’s sentiments over Anwar’s conviction.
She said that the case had been in court for many years, it was bound to come to an end. To Pakatan Rakyat, any decision other than setting Anwar free will not be satisfactory, she said.
MCA will continue to talk to the residents and voters of Kajang, to explain the issue, she said.
“The voters must evaluate whether the case is related to the by-election or not,” she said.
Interestingly, MCA president Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai and deputy president Datuk Dr Wee Ka Siong have not made any comment so far on Anwar’s case on any social media platform such as Twitter and Facebook.
In the bigger perspective, MCA is in a quandary because a significant portion of the Chinese believed that the party would not be able to be critical of BN and push the ruling coalition to adopt fairer policies.
Certainly, MCA has not been able to defend the government’s policies such as the quota system implemented since 1970 in education and the civil service which were deemed to be unfair to the non-Malays.
This has prompted a majority of the Chinese to fully embrace the agenda for change offered by the Pakatan Rakyat in the 13th general election.
With the voting pattern of the Chinese unlikely to see a big shift, according to opinion pollster Merdeka Centre, the MCA is the underdog in the Kajang by-election and looks doomed to fail.
It is worth noting that the MCA strategy following Anwar’s announcement that he would contest in Kajang was to reduce his electoral majority, to cause embarrassment to the popular leader.
The party had attacked Anwar for contributing to the unfair treatment of Chinese education in Malaysia during the 1980s, when he was the Education Minister. As the ministry had been at the centre of a controversial move to place non-Mandarin speaking administrative staff in Chinese schools, it also blamed Anwar for bringing about the crackdown on 106 activists and educationists during the Operation Lalang in 1987, when they were arrested under the Internal Security Act 1960.
Initially, MCA might have been able to achieve its aim of reducing Anwar’s majority, banking on the unhappiness of a section of voters over the forcing of the by-election by PKR, but the game changed drastically with Anwar’s conviction on Friday.
The biggest Chinese-based party in Malaysia may even face a disgraceful defeat if its candidate loses her deposit. Many netizens have made this call to the Kajang voters since the court sentence was announced.
The MCA vice president and Kajang candidate Datin Paduka Chew Mei Fun had hoped that she could garner 25-27% Chinese votes in Kajang, while the MCA National Chairman Chong Shin Woon was also quoted as saying that if the party could garner 30-35% Chinese votes, the party could rejoin the Cabinet with dignity, after its self-imposed exit from government posts.
MCA only won over 18% Chinese votes in the Kajang constituency in the 13th general election.
For the new MCA leadership under Liow, who had wanted to prove their worth to the Prime Minister by making a “last call” for the party, this by-election may not allow it to reclaim its dignity just yet.
By Chen Shau Fui, FZ
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