Soi Lek gets four-year suspension instead

The MCA central committee has today revoked Dr Chua Soi Lek’s expulsion from the party and instead suspended his membership for four years.

In so doing, the powerful central committee has effectively scuttled Chua’s chances of challenging his nemesis, party president Ong Tee Keat, in the next party elections due in 2011.

In addition, he will not be able to contest in the next general election.

The decision will also work against Chua in the upcoming extraordinary general meeting (EGM) on Oct 10 as this will rob him of some sympathy from the party delegates.

The EGM has been called by Chua's supporters in the bid to quash the controversial presidential council's decision on Aug 26 to sack the MCA deputy president for causing disrepute to the party over his sex DVD scandal.

The suspension of Chua's membership by the central committee - which is the party's highest-decision making body - has helped Ong to take the wind out of his estranged deputy's sails.

Marathon seven-hour meeting

The 45-member central committee, a majority of whom are Ong's men, met for a marathon seven hours this afternoon at the party's headquarters in Wisma MCA, Kuala Lumpur.

The meeting, which started at 1pm, ended with a press conference held by Ong at 8pm.

Chua’s sacking by the presidential council were among several issues discussed at the meeting today.

Reading from a prepared statement, Ong said the central committee was empowered to overrule the presidential council’s decision regardless of whether there was an appeal, as provided in the party constitution.

“Further, there are precedents where the decisions of the presidential council have been reviewed,” said Ong.

"The CC (central committee) collectively resolves to suspend Dr Chua for four years, with effect from today, and that his party post is also suspended.

"The CC, being the body conferred with the powers of the General Assembly, is a platform for its members to express their independent views and opinions and make the appropriate considered decision."

Ong insisted the central committee’s decision was not redundant given that one of the five resolutions for the EGM is to reinstate Chua as party deputy resident and party member.

“The motion is not redundant. We have to go through due diligence. The EGM remains intact, which would provide all central delegates the opportunity to decide.

“But the central committee still has a role to play. It is a platform to decide on disciplinary cases brought before it,” said Ong.

He stressed that the five proposed resolutions - which includes a no-confidence vote against Ong and a resolution to reinstate Chua - would remain.

Asked how the central committee came to the four-year suspension ruling, Ong said it was derived from the views of all members present, but he refused to elaborate.

Chua's ally left meeting in protest

Earlier, Tan Chai Ho, who is a member of the central committee and the key person in the requisitioning of the EGM, abruptly left the meeting at 5.15pm.

Tan told reporters he had urged the committee not to discuss Chua’s sacking as more than a third of the party’s central delegates had already called an EGM to resolve the matter.

He argued that the central committee should respect the wishes of the delegates.

"I think this is not the time to discuss the case because (the delegates) are leaving it to the EGM for the final decision," he said.

Five minutes after Tan spoke to the waiting journalists, deputy secretary-general Loke Yuen Yow emerged from the meeting room to go to the toilet. He was however cornered by the press.

According to Loke, the central committee was merely following the procedures laid out in the party constitution to deliberate on the decisions made by the presidential council - a 20-member committee comprising mostly top office bearers.

He said it was only after the central committee had endorsed the presidential council’s decision that Chua’s expulsion would be deemed final.

"No matter what the central committee decides, it will not affect the EGM... I don't know why Tan was so upset," said Loke.

In a joint statement late this evening, Tan and two other requisitionists - Loh Seng Kok and Chong Itt Chew - contended that the central committee had no right to discuss Chua’s sacking as the latter did not appeal.

Using the courts as an analogy, the trio said the lower courts - in this case the central committee - should not interfere when a case is brought to a higher court, which is the EGM.

The trio added that the four-year suspension meted out to Chua was a calculated attempt to prevent him from challenging Ong in the next round of party elections.

Loh said that the decision to reverse Chua's sacking and to impose a suspension was meant to stop the MCA deputy chief from contesting in the next party election and to gain sympathy for Ong.