22 Nov 2019

Press statement by MCA Spokesperson Mike Chong

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Conditions attached expose Guan Eng's continued insincerity on TARUC allocation announcement

After the clarion call by various quarters, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng has finally responded to public opinion and said that the Government was willing to allocate at least RM30 million a year to the Tunku Abdul Rahman University College (TARUC) founded by MCA 50 years ago.

But is the Minister of Finance sincere in providing such an allocation? Or is this the latest political game by Lim Guan Eng?

Herein lies 2 issues:

1. There are 2 registered alumni associations affiliated with TARUC, namely: the Federation TAR Student Alumni, and the Tarcian Alumni Association (TAA). It was stated in the statement of the Minister of Finance that the government's allocation will be channeled to a trust fund managed by TAA.

The question is, why select TAA and not the Federstion TAR Student Alumni? What is the TAA's relationship with the Minister of Finance until they are given priority to handle the RM30 million allocation? We appeal to the Minister of Finance for clarification.

2. The last paragraph of his statement infers: The channelling of funds from the Trust Fund to TARUC is still possible but is subject to the condition that the MCA leadership relinquishes its ownership authority, administration, and office as Trustee Board members and TARUC Board of Governors.

If Lim Guan Eng was sincere in helping TARUC, why should such a condition be imposed? To date, Lim Guan Eng and his comrades have not been able to prove that MCA has ever brought any party politics into TARUC nor carried out any political activities at TARUC campuses.

In fact, many senior leaders in PH today, including Primary Industries Minister Teresa Kok, Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Salahuddin Ayub, Negeri Sembilan EXCO Teo Kok Seon and many more, are TARUC graduates.

If MCA had really used TARUC to spread its political views and as a means of gaining support, would the above-mentioned public figures become PH leaders?

It seems that this announcement is another trick by Lim Guan Eng to exploit the TARUC allocation as capital to attack the MCA, and finally TARUC and thousands of TARUC students who have been made victims.

Mike Chong
MCA Spokesperson

-MCA Online-