He was the eighth person to declare his intention to run for one of the four hotly contested MCA vice-president posts. While that is a lucky number for many Chinese Malaysians, Chor Chee Heung said it did not mean much to him.

In this interview - part of the ' MCA candidates meet Malaysiakini ' series - Chor talked about his chances in the party polls and who he supports in the key presidential race.

Malaysiakini: How is your campaigning going so far?

Chor: The campaigning has been very smooth, I am able to meet quite a large number of the central delegates from various parts of the country. Of course, there are many more that I have yet to visit. I don't think I am able to cover the entire country but I will nevertheless do my level best to visit as many (delegates) as I can. I am doing this in the spirit of 'family contest'.

What do you mean by 'family contest'?

All the contestants are very well-known to me and they are very good friends. We have been in the party for quite some time now. Everyone has been contributing our part so this is a friendly rivalry - a friendly contest among friends.

Did you meet any obstacle in your campaigning?

No. So far the response I got are encouraging and positive. I cannot ask for more. The only obstacle is time, and time is the major constraint.

Are there any states that you think you would not be able to visit?

Sabah. I was able to visit Sabah but not all the divisions as some other contestants have done so. That is my only regret. Every delegate and every state are important, but Sabah is little bit far, and geographically I intend to cover Peninsula first and then move over to Sabah.

The VP race is going to be a nine-corner fight. How do you see your chances?

My chances are good. I am not entirely a stranger for them (the delegates) because I have been in the party central committee for more than 10 years so I could have met most of them and I believe so far I have done reasonably well in terms of party work, and in terms of contribution when I was holding government post.

How do you see the difference between you and other candidates?

I believe firstly, I have the qualification. Secondly, I am able to mix very well with all ranks of the membership, whether they are leaders or ordinary members.

I have been a team player all the while, but I speak my mind though - that's why a lot of people said I am ' ang mo tee ' (Chinese dialect Hokkien meaning those who are frank with their views) so it does not goes down very well sometimes with a lot of people when you tend to speak what need to be spoken.

You were the eighth person to declare your intention to contest the vice-president post.

Eight (considered prosperous in Chinese dialect) is lucky but that doesn't mean anything. I didn't wait for that. I waited and I took sometime to consider, ponder and find out whether there were other people nominating themselves (for the post) but since there was none and with the encouragement and demand from Kedah and Perlis, I thought it was the right time to make the announcement.

You relinquished the government post last year. Are you trying to make a comeback to active politics.

Not necessary. It's not necessary if I win the VP race then I would want to be a minister. Even if I want, it is not for me to say. It is for the president to decide and that is his privilege, and I am not going to quarrel with him over that

It is a kind of a unwritten convention that top party posts come with government posts.

Not necessary. It may be one of the reasons, but not necessary the main reason.

You have earlier said you want to make a comeback in the government.

That is not for me to decide.

So what made you want to contest for vice-president?

As a vice-president, I will be able to contribute more. I will be in the mainstream (of politics).

Was it your choice to relinquish the deputy minister post? It appears contradictory to your present move.

Of course (it is my decision to step down as deputy minister). No, I don't see it (as contradictory). A lot of people have been presumptuous. It is a presumption that he as a vice-president he must be a minister. If a vice-president is appointed as a member of cabinet, that's good. If he or she is not appointed, so be it.

If you are elected, would you seek a higher government post, meaning full minister instead of the deputy minister post you had previously been holding.

I think it is too premature to answer all that.

What is your view of the age factor in the party polls. Some have argued that veteran leaders should give way to younger leaders.

It takes all generations to be in the party.

How would you categorise yourself?

Middle-aged. (He is 50-years-old)

The party's mood seems to lean towards younger leaders.

I would say, a good mix of old, young and middle-aged leaders. The older you are, the more experience you have. Younger leaders are more aggressive and they move fast. As for the middle-aged leaders, they tend to play the role of stabilising the party.

Stabilising the party is what you think you can do?

Yes, of course.

Your opinion on the current leadership.

The current leadership, the party top two leaders, have just stepped in. So far they are doing well. There is still a lot to be done but I believe the party is on the right track, now we have managed to get away from internal dissent and clique formation problem, we have gone over that now and the entire party membership has got a strong resembling sense of unity. We continue to move and strive forward and work for the betterment of the party members.

What about the formation of alliances in party elections?

I for one do not quite support the formation of alliances but you can't avoid it because we are all human beings so whenever there is more than one post up for grabs, there will be some exchanging of votes and mutual assistance will come into place. I won't call it as formation of alliances.

Are you working with any candidates?

No, I am working with everybody. For example you go to the states, every state will have their own candidate for certain post and they help us. I don't just go to one state to tell them to vote for me. I go to every state and say the same thing because not all the states put up VP candidate.

The formation of alliance will deprive party members to vote for their own choice of candidates, so we must have mutual assistance from every aspects, which is different from the formation of alliance, that is more serious.

Another two pertinent issues are 'menu' politics and open pledges of support for the leadership.

The open pledges of support is just something that come up automatically from many states. There is nothing wrong with that, although a lot of people dispute this. If it is a directive from the party top leadership, then it may be unhealthy. But if people voluntarily to express who they want to support, I don't think it contravenes any code of conduct nor is it unhealthy.

Today the delegates are matured a lot, they don't listen to directive. Only they know how to think so whether you do or you do not do the pledging of support, it doesn't make any difference.

What is your view on vice-president Chua Jui Meng who is challenging incumbent president Ong Ka Ting.

In principle we don't support him (Chua) but in view of the framework of our party constitution - it is a democratic party and the process of democracy is very much alive - this gives an opportunity for qualified central delegates to offer themselves to be a candidate. Nobody can stop.

Why do you say you don't support him 'in principle'?

I believe in the present leadership.

Are Chua's ideas in his manifesto any different from the current leadership?

I have not gone through the manifesto. It is too thick.

Are you going to issue a manifesto?

No. I subscribe to the present principle of leadership and the objective of the current president because what he has been doing, in a way, this has been agreed by the central committee of which I am a member. We have thrashed that out, and we know this is the right way and we endorse it. To issue another set of manifesto is to depart from we have agreed upon.