Gan to appoint Wee as sec-gen if he wins

KUALA LUMPUR: MCA presidential candidate Gan Ping Sieu said he and Datuk Tee Siew Kiong – the GanTee team – will appoint Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong as the party secretary-general if they win the MCA party elections today.

Gan said Dr Wee, his rival in the contest for the party president’s post, would be given an important platform to bring about change and reinvent the party.

“I will appoint him the party secretary-general and invite Datuk Dr Mah Hang Soon to sit in the presidential council as long as Siew Keong and I lead the party.

“We need a big group of talented people to come together if we want to rebuild MCA.

“Those who have the experience in the central leadership, relatively not too old, as well as those who have held public positions before, it is time for them to come back to rebuild the party,” he told a press conference here yesterday.

The GanTee team is vying for the posts of president and deputy presi- dent respectively.

They are going against the WeeMah team of Dr Wee and Dr Mah.

The battle for the president’s post will be a three-cornered fight with a last-minute inclusion of Beruas MCA Youth chief Ngoo Teck Keong, 31, as a contestant for the top post.

Apart from Dr Wee, Gan said that among the experienced leaders of calibre who should return to serve are former MPs Datuk Chua Tee Yong, Datuk Wee Jeck Seng and Datuk Chong Sin Woon, adding that MCA was badly in need of an inclusive team to reinvent itself.

He also said that the party elections should be seen as a referendum from the grassroots to decide whether MCA should leave or remain with Barisan Nasional.

He said Dr Wee remained silent on this.

Dr Wee, he added, had used a very technical excuse that he would leave it to the central delegates, numbering about 2,400 people, to make a decision towards the end of the year.

“But such a historical decision should involve a wider participation.

“Whoever wishes to lead the party must have a clear stance and roadmap towards political recovery.

“Unfortunately, Ka Siong is not prepared to offer his view on this, and that surprises me despite his intelligence and political skills,” Gan said.

Dr Wee, 50, is the sole MP from MCA. The party won two state seats out of the 129 seats contested in GE14.

When asked if MCA will join Pakatan Harapan if he leads the party, Gan said the issue did not arise at the time as it was more important for MCA to be independent and rebuild itself.

“The party must become strong first before it considers cooperating with any party or anyone that upholds the values of moderation, inclusiveness, diversity and equal rights and opportunities for

all citizens.

“MCA must go back to the middle ground,” he added.

On appointing him as secretarygeneral, Dr Wee described the offer as ridiculous as Gan had earlier advised him to take good care of his health and hinted that he should stay away from the party’s top post.

“By offering me the post of secretary-general, is he saying that it is an easy and stress-free job?” he said in a Facebook post.

Dr Wee said his opponents in Parliament would make fun of him if he lost in the party elections as he would be seen as not being able to command the support from the grassroots.