MCA backing Najib, says party leader

MCA will continue to throw its support behind Datuk Seri Najib Razak, said a party leader today, even as some of his senior colleagues urged the Chinese party's seven MPs to consider if it was tenable to support the prime minister. Party central committee member Datuk Seri Ti Lian Ker said Najib was needed to steer Malaysia's economy, as the nation struggles against a plunging ringgit amid a worsening global outlook. "MCA's stand is clear. We will focus on supporting the PM who had proven himself in steering Malaysia out of the 2008 to 2009 global economic recession which hit Malaysia badly then. "Today, Malaysia should focus on our economic gain in light of global uncertainties and the new challenges ahead. "We need to pull together our resources and stabilise our economy as well as political stability," he told The Malaysian Insider in a brief WhatsApp message today. Despite assurances from Putrajaya that Malaysia's fundamentals were strong, concerns have been mounting over the economy as the ringgit, Asia's worst performing currency in the past one year, slid beyond the RM4 mark against the US dollar. This had been attributed to worsening global outlook, China's surprise devaluation of the yuan, plunging commodity prices and the current political scandal linked to Najib over the US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) "donation" from a Middle Eastern country deposited into his personal accounts while his brainchild, state investment firm 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), is facing multiple probes into its alleged financial irregularities. The Malaysian Insider reported today that two of MCA's veteran leaders urged the senior BN party MPs to pile on pressure for Najib to step down. Tan Foong Luen, a Negri Sembilan MCA leader who heads the party's Seremban division legal bureau, said MCA lawmakers, including the three ministers, should place the people and the nation above Najib. The three MCA ministers are Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai (Bentong), Datuk Ong Ka Chuan (Tanjong Malim) and Datuk Wee Ka Siong (Ayer Hitam). Another MCA veteran leader, Kluang division chief Gan Ping Sieu had said the constitutional process should take its due course for MPs to perform their duty, adding that people would be able to judge their MPs if a vote on Najib was taken in Parliament. The two veteran MCA call were the latest among Najib's detractors who urged him to resign. Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had also called for BN parliamentarians to support a motion of no-confidence against Najib's leadership, saying that a successful no-confidence vote would only result in Najib’s ouster, but BN would remain in power since it has the majority in the Dewan Rakyat. – September 2, 2015.