KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 19 — Barisan Nasional’s (BN) Chinese component parties, MCA and Gerakan, have expressed concern with the current constituency redelineation exercise that has also been criticised by Pakatan Harapan leaders.
Local daily The Star reported MCA president Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai claiming that the proposed redelineation was “worrisome” and detrimental to racial harmony.
“If the redelineation sees all Malay voters grouped in one area and another with only Chinese, then the cooperation we (BN) have now becomes meaningless.
“The exercise must reflect the multi-racial representation,” the head of the Chinese component party was quoted as saying at the Kapar MCA meeting yesterday.
Liow was also quoted saying that “we do not want Malaysia to become racial and extreme”, which could result in the country’s leadership facing problems in implementing multiracial and moderate policies.
The Election Commission (EC) in an 18-page notice had proposed to alter the electoral boundaries of several parliamentary and state constituencies in all states bar Perlis, Labuan and Putrajaya.
The proposed amendments could see 12 parliamentary and 34 state constituencies in the peninsula undergo a name change, while it also listed 13 proposed new state constituencies for Sabah, increasing the number of the state seats to 73.
In a separate news report on The Star, Gerakan president Datuk Seri Mah Siew Keong also objected to the commission’s exercise, alleging that it would affect the performance of the predominantly Chinese party.
“We will compete in 45 parliamentary and state seats in the 14th general elections. But the party does not favour the redelineation exercise by the EC.
“I have instructed all divisions to compile reports on the redelineation before sending it to the EC in a week’s time,” he was quoted as saying in Johor yesterday.
Mah also said Gerakan had identified several problems with the EC’s redelineation and will be filing objections before the one month deadline is up.
Both MCA and Gerakan had lost most of the seats they contested in the 13th general elections, winning just seven and one federal seat respectively.
