6 May 2018

Press statement by MCA Secretary-General, Ong Ka Chuan

Hate is a forceful wildfire which incinerates social fabrics, torches humanity

The 14th General Election will take place on 9 May 2018; just three days from now. During this campaigning period of 11 days, the thing that dismays me the most is how our opposition chose to repeatedly use hate to agitate the sentiments of Malaysians and neglected to approach politics rationally and peacefully, when debating about our vision, ideology and manifestos that are at odds.

This phenomenon is unsettling. In a way, it reflects the crudity of Pakatan Harapan (PH). They are unable to produce enough rationality between themselves to convince voters of their vision, ideology and manifesto, hence, they have to resort to use hate to smother the voting scene. We should be aware that hate should never be harnessed as one’s tool; for it will rip apart the very fabric of society, and devour our humanity. It is most imprudent for the PH to have played this card.

We can observe that this election has deteriorated into a malignant state. Since the dissolution of Parliament, public opinion has been centered around violence, slander, bullying, fake news and cursing, completely devoid of any signs of willingness to have a rational conversation. This is Malaysian democracy taking a step in the wrong direction.

Hate politics is like a wildfire, it is easy to lose control. And when you inevitably lose control, you will burn down the whole forest and no one can stop it. If PH chose this approach as their main arsenal, it only demonstrates their wretchedness — their willingness to attain their political goals even at a steep cost to the harmony and future of our country.

Hate brings not progress, only ruination. I earnestly beseech my fellow countrymen, to take a strong stance against hate politics. Only by comprehending the terrible costs that this kind of dirty politics comes with, can we together put an end to this debacle.

Dato’ Seri Ong Ka Chuan

MCA Secretary-General

-MCA online-