KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 7 — The storm in a teacup that is MCA’s dismissal of veteran politician Datuk Lee Hwa Beng is an indictment of how little its affairs still mattered to those outside the party, according to two political analysts.

Saying the ripples of the unexpected intrigue will not resonate beyond the walls of Wisma MCA, they brushed off the move as just another by president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek to consolidate his power in a party struggling to reconnect with the Chinese community it professes to represent.

“It has come to a point where we are just looking at how low MCA can go... a political party that does not win elections is not a political party,” political analyst Khoo Kay Peng told The Malay Mail Online when contacted.

Khoo said that even Lee’s reputation as a crusader of truth, especially after the latter penned a book detailing the many wrongs in the controversial Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal, counted for little in a party that has no clear leadership options besides Dr Chua.

He added that the former Subang Jaya assemblyman was merely facing the consequences of attempting to spark a movement to topple the current party chief.

“Public perception of the party has already reached its lowest point, and Hwa Beng’s sacking is not so big an issue as PKFZ or the party’s continuous subjugation by Umno to cause any drastic shift in perception,” Khoo said, referring to MCA’s relationship with Barisan Nasional (BN) lynchpin Umno.

Lee has set tongues wagging since Thursday, after he posted a series of tweets claiming that he was sacked from the party for apparently inviting DAP stalwart Lim Kit Siang to the launch of his book, “PKFZ: A Nation’s Trust Betrayed”, last year.

Lee, once Port Klang Authority (PKA) chairman, later alleged that his sacking was aimed at stopping an “Anything but Chua Soi Lek”, or ABC, movement that he professed to have started in a few states.

The boot also came just a week after Lee was elected as a central delegate for MCA’s Kelana Jaya division.

Political scientist Prof James Chin from Monash University Sunway agreed that the linking of Lee’s sacking to the presence of the DAP man was just a red herring to divert attention from a nascent anti-Chua movement, especially in Lee’s home state of Selangor.

Chin was equally dismissive of the consequence Lee’s expulsion would have on the party, noting that he was not a party warlord, a power broker in the party or a leader with a strong support base.

“His sacking will have no impact other than another bad publicity for MCA,” he said via email.

Khoo said Lee’s sacking was indicative of a concerted move by Dr Chua to remove all obstacles towards his total control of the party, especially with the party’s extraordinary general meeting (EGM) coming this October 20.

An open feud between Dr Chua and his deputy, Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai, escalated over recent weeks as the party nears its elections this December, with Liow having publicly questioned his president’s leadership on several occasions.

Lee set tongues wagging last week, after he posted a series of tweets claiming that he was sacked from the party for apparently inviting DAP stalwart Lim Kit Siang to the launch of his book last year. — Picture by Choo Choy May

Since then, Dr Chua’s faction has called for the EGM to allow delegates to debate over whether to censure Liow on charges of deliberately creating internal conflict in his feud with Dr Chua.

“Whatever it is, this definitely is a way towards that,” Khoo said, referring to efforts to kill off all contenders for the party presidency.

“Chua Soi Lek is in control. There is no suggestion that he is not in control at the moment. No other leader is able to challenge his control of the party and they have not pulled themselves together.”

Khoo noted that the EGM was a calculated move by Dr Chua, since little support among party delegates was going Liow’s way ― even key leaders formerly in ex-president Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat’s camp were now seen as aligned to Dr Chua, despite the two’s bitter rivalry over the presidency previously.

“We don’t see many lining up behind Liow and some key people who were with the Ong Tee Keat camp are now aligned to Chua... he is a very smart politician,” Khoo said, referring to Dr Chua.

Dr Chua previously announced he would not defend the presidency of the MCA following the party’s worst electoral performance in Election 2013, when it won just seven federal and 11 state seats. But rumours are growing that he may now go back on the announcement that he will step down after the party’s polls.

With fears the party may be headed down the same path as BN partner Gerakan, attention has increasingly turned towards the billions of ringgit in assets and shares owned by MCA.