The spat between Nazri and MCA members continues with the MCA president telling Nazri to “watch your language”.
In an interview with the China Press yesterday, Tourism and Culture Minister and Padang Rengas MP Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz claimed that the MCA division in his constituency has been boycotting him since the 13th general elections in 2013.
“The entire MCA Padang Rengas division committee is boycotting me, what can I do? So, MCA is not my friend,” said Nazri who is also an Umno supreme council member.
He added that the situation clearly showed who was not practising the Barisan Nasional (BN) spirit.
Nazri has been criticised severely in the past week by MCA and other Chinese leaders after he called multi-billionaire Robert Kuok a “pondan” (pansy) and “ayam betina” (hen), and challenged the 94-year-old tycoon to contest in the 14th general election (GE14).
His remarks followed allegations made by blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin that Kuok funded DAP in an effort to oust the BN government and replace it with a Chinese-led administration. Kuok has denied the allegations and said he reserved the right to sue the blogger.
Outraged MCA leaders demanded that Nazri apologised to Kuok but he refused.
The bad blood between Nazri and the MCA is believed to have arisen during the time when Dr Chua Soi Lek helmed the Chinese-based party, and the two feuded with each other in the Chinese media just before GE13.
The quarrel led to MCA’s Padang Rengas division boycotting Nazri.
Not known to be diplomatic with either friends or foes, Nazri reminded MCA not to make the matter a racial issue because he is a “BN minister”.
As a representative of the BN government, he said he would hit back at any criticisms against the government.
He also claimed that MCA could not represent the Chinese community of Malaysia because the party was badly defeated in GE13, managing to win only seven parliamentary seats.
Nazri said he enjoyed cordial relations with the DAP as the party had won most of the Chinese votes in GE13 and received the mandate to rule Penang.
“That is why I said DAP represented the voice of the Chinese community because I respected the results of GE13.
“DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng is the chief minister of Penang and that is why I cooperate with him because DAP heads the state government. That is the decision of the Chinese community,” he said.
Nazri added that the MCA should not have dragged Prime Minister Najib Razak into the issue.
In response, MCA president Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said following his speech to party members during MCA’s 69th-anniversary celebrations in Kuala Lumpur today, “His behaviour is unbecoming. What is wrong with MCA conveying the feelings of the Chinese community to the prime minister and Cabinet? That is its main role.”
During his speech, Liow said the party is not one to stir up trouble but added it is not afraid to stand up for the rights of the Chinese community as well as being a contributing member of BN.
Some 35 MCA Youth members gathered outside the main entrance of the party’s headquarters at Wisma MCA today to stage a brief demonstration.
Carrying placards criticising Nazri as a “thorn in the side”, they chanted slogans calling for him to apologise for his “disrespectful conduct”.
Related report: Feb 27, Onslaught Against Robert Kuok “Insulting”, Says Mahathir