The dust will not settle o­n the Malaysian Trade Union Congress (MTUC) leadership crisis as long as president Zainal Rampak insisted o­n remaining in power, said an office bearer today.

MTUC secretary-general G Rajasekaran (photo) said although the congress constitution was supreme, the fact that deputy president Mohamed Shafie BP Mammal said he was upset that Zainal failed to keep his word showed that the matter was far from settled.

"Yes, Mohamed Shafie appeared to be very calm upon his return from Mecca, but he made it clear that he was unhappy with Zainal," Rajasekaran said when contacted.

"However, there is nothing much that members can do, because this is a personal matter," he added.

The secretary-general said he remained disappointed that a solution was not reached.

Mohamed Shafie (photo) had admitted that there was nothing that could prevent the president from leading the congress until his term expires in 2004.

Last December, Zainal said he would remain at the helm of MTUC despite signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with his deputy that he would step down by January this year.

The MOU - signed prior to the congress' triennial election last year - stated that Mohamed Shafie would assume the presidency in January o­n the condition that he would not contest against Zainal in the election.

Amicable solution

At a joint press conference with Zainal yesterday, Mohamed Shafie said the former would remain at the top whether "I like it or not".

He made no attempt to hide his disdain for the president for not honouring his word, likening Zainal's action to "someone who refuses to sell the house despite having taken the deposit".

However, he said the constitution stipulated that Zainal was the president and he would accept this for the sake of congress unity and solidarity.

On the other hand, Zainal, who has been the MTUC president for 14 years, refused to comment whether he was being fair.

When told by malaysiakini that even Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad had indirectly criticised him for not stepping down, an irate Zainal (photo) retorted: "PM is different. What I am to PM? PM is bigger than me. I am just a small fellow in a small organisation. Don't compare me with PM."

Pressed further for comment, he said: "Why you point at me about honouring words. There are others who are not. Why don't you ask other people (as well)? (Do) you think your question is fair (to me)?

Despite this, the president - a former DAP member who later joined Umno - claimed there was no bad blood between his deputy and him.

Meanwhile, Rajasekaran expressed hope that the two leaders would reach an amicable solution for the sake of the workers.

"As for now, there is still no compromise. It is important for the duo to find a compromise before they can move o­n," he said.

"There are a lot more pressing issues that MTUC should focus o­n rather than getting caught in a leadership tussle," he added.

Credibility issue

In a related development, former Congress of Union of Employees in the Public and Civil Services (Cuepacs) secretary-general AH Ponniah welcomed the move by both leaders to settle the matter for greater solidarity in the congress.

He said more time could be devoted to issues related to the workers if the duo solve their crisis.

"Otherwise, the workers will be the victims because the leaders cannot be mobilised. How could they mobilise the workers when they are losing credibility?" he added.

Ponniah also advised both leaders to seriously concentrate o­n ways to improve their credibility

"It takes years for them to gain trust from fellow workers, but it takes o­nly seconds for the trust to be destroyed.

"Now both Zainal and Mohamed Shafie have to work all over again (to gain trust)," he said when contacted.

Ponniah stressed that it was vital for leaders to show accountability in order to gain respect.