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There’s a Chinese proverb: One mountain cannot contain two tigers.
For MCA and DAP, both vying to represent Malaysian Chinese, that mountain is getting increasingly crowded.
In a lengthy statement, MCA vice president Datuk Seri Ti Lian Ker lauded the announcement by party president Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong that the party will remain within the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, but called for BN to exit the current Madani government, allegedly dominated by DAP.
It’s a high-stakes gamble for a party that has been losing ground to DAP for years, now trying to carve out space by attacking the very party that has eclipsed it.
Ti’s central argument is simple: DAP is politically toxic, and BN partners like MCA and UMNO are paying the price for staying in government with them.
MCA has made its position clear: We remain in BN, but we will not continue in a government that places DAP at the centre of power.
He accused DAP of being the “single largest political liability” within the unity government, claiming the party has failed to win acceptance among Malay voters due to decades of “confrontational, provocative” politics.
The Malays Don’t Forget, The Chinese Don’t Believe
At the same time, he argued, DAP can no longer deliver Chinese votes either, as Chinese voters increasingly see through the party’s “reformist rhetoric” that goes silent once in power.
The result? BN gets blamed when things go wrong – rising costs, subsidy cuts, broken promises – while DAP distances itself from the fallout.
Do not drag UMNO into becoming DAP’s shield. Do not force MCA to pay the political price.
Ti has been hammering this message since early 2024, calling DAP the “Achilles’ heel” of the Madani government.
His reasoning: DAP’s decades of anti-establishment rhetoric have left deep scars among Malay voters, who he says “do not forget easily.”
He pointed to the recent UMNO General Assembly as proof that grassroots Malay sentiment remains hostile toward DAP.
The Malays remember decades of DAP’s rhetoric, hostility, and provocations.
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MCA’s Gamble: Principle Over Power
But DAP’s problems aren’t just with Malay voters – the former Pahang state assemblyman claimed Chinese voters are also turning away, recognising that DAP “hides behind reformist rhetoric but falls silent once in power.”
He even accused DAP of sabotaging MCA by running Malay candidates in Chinese-majority constituencies like Raub and Bentong, causing MCA to lose those seats.
For MCA, holding just two parliamentary seats compared to DAP’s 40, this isn’t political posturing – it’s about survival after years of haemorrhaging support and relevance.
Ti’s pitch is stark: MCA won’t compromise principles to stay in power, unlike DAP, and BN must exit the government to stop being DAP’s scapegoat.
The irony is sharp: A Chinese-majority party struggling for Chinese votes is now attacking another Chinese party by appealing to Malay grievances, risking further alienation of the very voters it needs.
What’s clear is that MCA is no longer trying to out-DAP the DAP – instead, it’s betting on being everything DAP isn’t, and hoping that’s enough to matter again.
The move also puts MCA at odds with UMNO, which has asked MCA to swallow a bitter pill and remain in government, arguing there’s no benefit to being in opposition.
@demirakyatchannel MCA dinasihatkan untuk sabar dalam menempuh perjuangan politik terutamanya isu ketidaksefahaman dengan DAP yang turut menjadi sebahagian daripada Kerajaan Perpaduan. #mca #dinasihat #bersabar #kerajaanperpaduan #pembangkang #ahmadmaslan #politikmalaysia ♬ Powerful dark futuristic science fiction film music(1536393) – Azure Glitch
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