It has been nearly a year since MCA president Ong Tee Keat and his now former deputy Dr Chua Soi Lek began their feud and there seems no end to it.

However, should the extraordinary ordinary meeting (EGM) not resolve the ongoing dispute, which has expanded to become a referendum on Ong's leadership, Chua is ready to listen to any proposed ‘peace plans'.

The caveat - that Chua's membership in the party must be restored, as he insists that his sacking was purely a political move by Ong.

Below is the second and concluding part of Malaysiakini's interview with Chua last Friday:

Malaysiakini: How has your relationship been with Ong? Has this been a long time coming?

Chua: He is hardly on speaking terms with me since the party election. The first week after the party election, he wrote a long article to the Chinese press condemning me.

When I confronted him, he said it was an old article which the Chinese press published without consulting him.

That is Ong Tee Keat's way of explaining it. He also claimed that an SMS sent to me was because someone hacked into his phone. I can show it to you. I kept it. Two weeks later, that particular MCA leader (mentioned in the SMS) was suspended. I'm not creating a lie. I'm not good at that.

The question is, why should anyone hack into his phone? I replied him and said that I'm not declaring war on him. I said, whatever you want to do, you are the president. When he was in Sabah, he openly told five division chiefs that "Chua Soi Lek is a dog and I will use the disciplinary board to chop off his head".

He said that many times. These people have come forward in the Chinese papers.

Is there an effort to negotiate a compromise or patch up your relationship?

No. This is water under the bridge. I don't have much faith in this. I don't want to talk about this. Today, I'm not even a MCA member. What is there to patch up?

Apparently, you were demanding too much during the negotiations.

No. I've said it before. I don't want to be a minister. I only want to be the Johor state liaisons chairman. He is very good at attacking (his enemies) nonstop so that the allegations will stick.

Do you feel you have been marginalised since being elected?

That is not the word. He has put me in exile. He cannot tolerate me. He feels I'm a threat and an enemy.

Do you think this is some sort of inferiority complex?

I won't say it is an inferiority complex. When you are the president and you know that you are not performing, and not saying what needs to be said, and you have someone else who knows what to say and do, won't you feel threatened?

He said the disciplinary board must dispense discipline in the party. But how many cases has the board heard over the past year?

Ten at the most, which is all selective persecution. He has already told people that the board would axe me too.

What sort of fairness and justice are you talking about? This is merely creating falsehood.

Do you think that the EGM can solve the problem once and for all? Is there a possibility the feud may drag on like what happened in the 80s?

If my team loses, I walk. Simple as that. I can't even attend the EGM. Today, I'm not a member. I've spent more than 20 years in MCA. Half my working life was spent as a elected representative and I'm still a divisional head. Have I done something so wrong that I deserve to be axed - a word he likes to use - from the party?

Is his image so untainted? Let me stand beside him and do a popularity vote. I'm very doubtful who will be the winner.

Another thing I like to rebut is that they always say that because of my video incident, people cannot accept me. Last year when I stood for deputy presidency, I won, despite the whole machinery stacked against me. This time I'm fighting the whole machinery - there are ministers and deputy ministers surrounding them.

Then there is the media. I don't have to tell you what media is controlled by MCA.

There is a lot of media people involved in this fight. They are writing online and in emails to condemn me.

Have they ever said what MCA has done? They have forgotten that they are the leaders. They have to tell the people what MCA is doing.

There is talk of a 'Plan C' which is a peace plan where both of you step down?

I don't mind. I don't harbour hopes of being the president. But restore my membership first. I cannot spend half my lifespan in the party and then retire without being a member.

I am acceptable to any peace plan that can bring stability to the party and restore the confidence of the Chinese community.

If you don't restore my membership, then let the delegates decide at the EGM. We cannot talk about a peace plan after the EGM.

Do you still think the Chinese community still cares about MCA?

At the rate we are going, I don't think the Chinese give a damn about the MCA.

The eight by-elections is very obvious. They (Ong's camp) blame it on me. (Laughs). I think the current party struggle is doing a lot of damage. All of us are responsible for it. But you as the president must know how to steer the party.

If your faction wins...?

There will be no witch hunt. There will be collective leadership who listens to the grassroots. Those who can perform will be brought back again.

Even if they are with the current leadership?

No. Those in the current leadership are appointed by him. The ministers and the deputy ministers should not be involved in this fight. The whole thing started off because the president does not know how to steer the ship as the captain of the boat. He feels that he can steer left, right, centre... anywhere he wants.

Some say the current feud reflects a fight between the ‘old MCA' versus the ‘new MCA'.

That is not a fair description. That is a convenient way to look at it and the media likes to use all sorts of labels. I don't think its true. There is no fight between the young and the old. It is the fight between people who are elected by the central delegates and a president surrounded by appointed members.

There is a lot of appointed members who are given cars and drivers. The question is, where do they get all these? I have no problems with that. But this group has become the mother of all yes men.

How are you going to handle the perception of a ‘Team A vs Team B' fight if your faction wins?

MCA has gone through many struggles like all other political party. You must have confidence. You must have confidence that people support you, that you are doing the right thing. Do not fight your own shadows.

Ong Tee Keat's biggest enemy is himself. Please quote me on that. He doesn't trust himself. He is easily swayed by people surrounding him. Everybody knows that.

What do you think of his reforms, such as direct election for the top posts?

First thing is, you must clean up the membership (list) first. How you clean up is important. You cannot clean up by only vigorously cleaning up divisions that supports the leadership.

Those divisions that support me (Chua Soi Lek), I pretend not to clean up. So you have bloated divisions with big numbers, but divisions that support Ong are downsized.

There is no fairness, no equality. There will be no ‘one man one vote'. I proposed (before) that we should brainstorm and even call in senior leaders before we decide. There should not be a rush, but he doesn't want to believe that.

Ong claims that his team has a ‘grand plan' to reform the party.

He is suffering from a delusion of grandeur. He thinks his image is very good. If his image is fantastic, then why is it that in the by-elections, there is no increase in Chinese votes.
Why must he (be called up by the) MACC? People are talking about it. The question is whether he is aware of this.

What kind of party reforms would you support? If your faction wins, will you support his current plan?

He has no plan. He has nothing. You can quote me on that.

Even direct election of top leaders?

That is not his plan. It has been tossed around for a while... I have proposed a one-day conference on this to let the members discuss it. You cannot have an EGM to vote on it without first discussing its implications or how it should be implemented.

What about future cooperation with Umno? Ong has been rather confrontational.

He has been indulging in closed door Umno bashing. I have openly challenged him not to do this. Be brave to say "I, Ong Tee Keat, is the only MCA president brave enough to defy the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister". But he never took up my challenge, that is why he hates me for that.

Don't be a hero to your own members behind closed doors, it doesn't serve any purpose. Whether he likes it or not, he is part of the coalition partner in BN.

What about your style?

I do not believe in direct confrontation. It doesn't serve any purpose. At the end of the day, when you stand for election, you stand under the BN banner.

You must not forget that. Anything wrong with BN and your candidate will be affected. You must know how to build up consensus, network with NGOs, with the Chinese community and BN component parties.

That includes Umno. One must accept that the head of BN comes from Umno and the majority of Cabinet members are from Umno.

It is up to you how you want to work with them. There is so many ways to skin a cat. Any method should yield results. It should not damage the image of BN.

Our readers are asking: In view of the sex scandal DVD, why are you fighting? Why didn't you retire after that?

Somebody taped me. I didn't tape myself. If I tape myself and it leaks out, I should go off.

Nobody is talking about the person who taped me and why he taped me. Why? Are we going to have this political culture where we film their secret life, or trap them.

I never asked to be fighting against the president. When I campaigned for deputy presidency last year, I was very open (about this matter).

I told them that I had this problem but if I still deserve to be supported, then please give me a chance.

After I won, I said I just want to do my work as a deputy president, give me a chance to do my work and I will go off.

Is staying on a matter of pride?

It is not a question of pride. I think I can still contribute. If I couldn't contribute, do you think I could get the type of support that I have?

I have no minister's post or government post. I have nothing. I am not even the chair of any (MCA) state liaison committee.

But I'm still getting a lot of support within the party. I am humbled that there are MCA members who want to see justice and fair play.

Though you may not have a government post, you have a powerful position as the BN coordinator for the (then) five Pakatan Rakyat-held states.

That is the root of my problems. After my appointment, there was a lot of grumbling that as the MCA president, he cannot even call component parties for meeting but the deputy could. He felt threatened. He said I made many promises during my meetings, but you can ask Umno and MIC members I have met and asked them if I have promised them anything. Nothing!

I only chair meetings to see what were the problems (they faced). What needs the central leadership's attention. Nobody is looking after them because they are an opposition state.

I haven't been able to do my work well. Barely two months, they chop off my head.

Are you still holding the post?

Yes. But I have not done any work since Aug 26. If I go around doing my work, he (Ong) would be even more upset.

Chua: Ong a 'closed-door Umno-bashing hero'

Part 1
Chua: 'Ong spooked by his own shadow'
Q&A: We shall prevail, says Chua