S'gor hudud saga - Liow knew, Liow didn't
After launching a series of vitriolic salvos against its traditional rival over the hudud issue, MCA now finds itself on the defensive.
And when news broke that Selangor Umno put forth a motion to debate the feasibility of implementing hudud in the state, DAP wasted little time in exacting revenge.
But did MCA president Liow Tiong Lai know about the motion beforehand? Here is where the story takes a bizarre twist.
Initially, Selangor (Umno) opposition leader Mohd Samsuddin Lias said that the state Umno had briefed Liow on the matter and he did not complain.
"We didn't receive their (MCA's) protest," he was quoted by the Chinese media as saying at a press conference yesterday when quizzed on the opposition coming from MCA.
"Liow knows about it but he did not respond," he said, claiming that the MCA president did not ask Selangor Umno to drop the motion.
Several hours later, there was a "clarification" from Shamsuddin at another press conference.
He explained that Selangor Umno had only informed MCA about the matter via an email yesterday and Liow was not briefed before the motion was submitted.
Liow's aide also issued a statement explaining that MCA only discovered about the motion when it was reported in the media.
This led political observers to wonder if the MCA president had somehow convinced the Umno man to retract his earlier statement in order to save the former from being ripped apart.
Concept of consensus?
But even if Shamsuddin had been misquoted and the clarification is indeed the true version of events, this would cast BN's concept of consensus into the limelight.
Informing MCA via email a week after the motion was submitted, especially on a sensitive matter such as this where the political repercussions are grave, is not acceptable.
Selangor Umno should have realised that the issue could put its allies in a fix, especially in the wake of their criticism against DAP over PAS wanting to push for the hudud implementation in Kelantan.
If this is not sheer political ineptitude, then it is a case of Selangor Umno disrespecting its allies or simply not being concerned about the consequences of their action.
Detractors have often described Umno as the "big brother" in the ruling coalition while the likes of MCA and Gerakan are expected to toe the line with their tails between their legs.
And Shamsuddin's "clarification" lends credence to this criticism.
Following the last two general elections, where MCA and Gerakan suffered electoral massacres, their role in BN has been reduced to that of mere window dressing.
With 88 parliament seats tucked under its belt, Umno is keeping them in the corridors of power.
MCA is now targeting Selangor speaker Hannah Yeoh for allowing the hudud motion to be debated but one observer pointed out that it was nothing short of a "brilliant" move.
"It is killing two birds with one stone. The first is DAP has proven that it is more democratic and is even willing to give space to issues it vehemently opposes.
"Secondly, DAP has put MCA on the warpath with Umno," he added.-Mkini
But did MCA president Liow Tiong Lai know about the motion beforehand? Here is where the story takes a bizarre twist.
Initially, Selangor (Umno) opposition leader Mohd Samsuddin Lias said that the state Umno had briefed Liow on the matter and he did not complain.
"We didn't receive their (MCA's) protest," he was quoted by the Chinese media as saying at a press conference yesterday when quizzed on the opposition coming from MCA.
"Liow knows about it but he did not respond," he said, claiming that the MCA president did not ask Selangor Umno to drop the motion.
Several hours later, there was a "clarification" from Shamsuddin at another press conference.
He explained that Selangor Umno had only informed MCA about the matter via an email yesterday and Liow was not briefed before the motion was submitted.
Liow's aide also issued a statement explaining that MCA only discovered about the motion when it was reported in the media.
This led political observers to wonder if the MCA president had somehow convinced the Umno man to retract his earlier statement in order to save the former from being ripped apart.
Concept of consensus?
But even if Shamsuddin had been misquoted and the clarification is indeed the true version of events, this would cast BN's concept of consensus into the limelight.
Informing MCA via email a week after the motion was submitted, especially on a sensitive matter such as this where the political repercussions are grave, is not acceptable.
Selangor Umno should have realised that the issue could put its allies in a fix, especially in the wake of their criticism against DAP over PAS wanting to push for the hudud implementation in Kelantan.
If this is not sheer political ineptitude, then it is a case of Selangor Umno disrespecting its allies or simply not being concerned about the consequences of their action.
Detractors have often described Umno as the "big brother" in the ruling coalition while the likes of MCA and Gerakan are expected to toe the line with their tails between their legs.
And Shamsuddin's "clarification" lends credence to this criticism.
Following the last two general elections, where MCA and Gerakan suffered electoral massacres, their role in BN has been reduced to that of mere window dressing.
With 88 parliament seats tucked under its belt, Umno is keeping them in the corridors of power.
MCA is now targeting Selangor speaker Hannah Yeoh for allowing the hudud motion to be debated but one observer pointed out that it was nothing short of a "brilliant" move.
"It is killing two birds with one stone. The first is DAP has proven that it is more democratic and is even willing to give space to issues it vehemently opposes.
"Secondly, DAP has put MCA on the warpath with Umno," he added.-Mkini
