Media statement by Teresa Kok Suh Sim in Shah Alam on Thursday, 21^st April 2011:

MCA Loh Seng Kok's absurd and ignorant aping of Dr Mahathir and Utusan Malaysia's racist diatribe confirms MCA is going the way of dinosaurs, incapable of evolving beyond Barisan Nasional's "divide and conquer" politics

MCA Publicity Chief Loh Seng Kok's absurd accusation that DAP's win in the recent Sarawak state elections would harm the Chinese in Sarawak is but an aping of Dr Mahathir and Utusan Malaysia's racist diatribe against DAP, and confirms that MCA is still trapped in Barisan Nasional's divisive racial politics that it has been practicing for its entire existence. (Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/dap-stoked-racial-sentiment-in-sarawak-win-says-mca/)

Too ashamed to admit that MCA contributed to BN's loss by failing to stem the suffering of the people of Sarawak under 3 decades of Taib Mahmud corruption, Loh has instead chosen to deflect the blame BN's loss upon supposed racial politics by DAP, while ignoring the numbers which show that many of the seats won by DAP were won with the support of Bumiputera votes, as well as Chinese votes, particularly in Kidurong, Meradong and Dudong. In Meradong for example, DAP received a simple majority of 51% of the Iban votes. In Batu Kawah, DAP received substantial votes from the Malay-Melanau community.

Furthermore, the analysis by Bridget Welsh, an independent political scientist, has found that it a myth that Pakatan Rakyat's win is due to Chinese voters only. In fact, the Chinese swing towards Pakatan Rakyat is comparatively less than the changes within other communities. The movement is greatest in mixed constituencies, and significant movement occurred across the ethnic communities, even the Malays. (Source: http://malaysiakini.com/news/161869)

It's appalling that Loh is so blinkered by MCA's racial politics that he can only read the Sarawak state election results as a zero-sum game for the Chinese while remaining blind to the fact that Malaysians in Sarawak are hungry for change.

Furthermore, throughout DAP's election campaign activities, DAP pledged to bring good governance, respect for freedom of religion, and poverty eradication to all Malaysians in Sarawak, as per our Pakatan Rakyat campaign manifesto for the Sarawak state election, while condemning corruption, abuse of power and nepotism. These are values which resonate with all Malaysians, not only the Chinese.

I therefore challenge Loh to show evidence of any time when any DAP leader has incited racial discontent or condemned any ethnic group during the Sarawak state elections.

I urge Loh and MCA to quit viewing politics in Malaysia through the racial lens and drop their BN "power-sharing" rhetoric, which is but a desperate attempt for the Chinese-only MCA to stay relevant while pussyfooting around corrupt and unjust policies of the dominant UMNO in Peninsula Malaysia and Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu in Sarawak.

Instead, MCA must emulate DAP in offering sound policy recommendations on issues of good governance, rule of law and human rights for all Malaysians, regardless of race. MCA must do this immediately or prepare for an even more devastating defeat in the upcoming general elections when the rakyat will reject MCA for having gone the way of the dinosaurs, unable to evolve beyond outdated racial politics.

* Teresa Kok Suh Sim, Selangor State Senior EXCO for Investment, Industry & Trade & MP for Seputeh