Ka Chuan quashes talk of Ka Ting’s comeback

MCA secretary-general Datuk Seri Ong Ka Chuan said his brother, former party president Tan Sri Ong Ka Ting, will definitely not contest in the 14th general election (GE14).

He said media reports that Ka Ting would make a political comeback were not true, China Press reported yesterday.

“That’s nonsense! He will not contest (in an election) again. How can it be?”

Ka Chuan, who is also International Trade and Industry minister II, told reporters this when asked to comment on talk that his brother will re-contest in the Kulai parliamentary constituency in the upcoming polls, after officiating at an international forum on Hanyu (Mandarin) teaching in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.

“I can say categorically that it (the possibility of Ka Ting contesting again) does not exist,” he said, dismissing talk of a comeback by Ka Ting as isinformation.

The reports, which were carried in the Chinese media, quoted party sources as saying MCA top leaders had held discussions on fielding a former party chief in Kulai, prompting speculation that the candidate would most likely be Ka Ting, who previously held the seat from 2008 to 2013.

Ka Ting did not contest in the last general election held on May 5, 2013.

On Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein’s remark on Monday that Umno has agreed in principle to return Gelang Patah to MCA, Ka Chuan said what the party wants is good teamwork among Barisan Nasional component parties, adding that there should not be over-emphasis on individual candidates and constituencies.

He said the issue of candidate choice should be discussed and decided by the coalition’s top leadership to avoid speculation that would only undermine the coalition’s solidarity and its chances of winning in the coming elections.