IPOH, March 25 — MCA president Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said today his party hopes to contest in seven parliamentary seats and 15 state seats in Perak.

He added that his party has submitted its shortlist of candidates for the seven parliamentary and 15 state seats to Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

“We are discussing the details now and waiting for the last confirmation. So, we leave it to the prime minister to make the full announcement soon,” he told reporters after attending the Perak MCA general assembly here. 

Liow kept a tight lip on the seats his party is eyeing, though he had in January announced that MCA vice-president Datuk Lee Chee Leong will make a run for the Kampar parliamentary seat.

Kampar MCA division deputy chairman Chang Gwo Chyang and secretary Daniel Wa have also been named likely candidates for the Malim Nawar and Keranji state seats respectively.

The other six parliamentary seats that are expected to be contested by MCA are Tanjung Malim, Gopeng, Ipoh Barat, Ipoh Timur, Batu Gajah and Lumut due to their relatively high percentage of ethnic Chinese voters.

Liow expressed confidence that the MCA can win all its targeted seats in Perak, claiming to have regained the voters’ trust.

“Chinese voters have lost hope with DAP. They give full support to them, but despite doing well in the previous election by winning 38 parliamentary seats and 96 state seats, the result is zero.

“They didn’t deliver anything to the community. They were playing on sentiment and emotion, focusing on rhetoric and negative energy to split the community in order to gather votes,” he said of the DAP.

“We are confident because we are delivering and building the nation,” he added.

Liow repeated his claim that Chinese Malaysians have grown disenchanted with the DAP.

“The DAP leaders are arrogant and they are having a wrong mission, which is to eliminate MCA from the Malaysian politics.

“The Malaysian political scenario depends on the people. This is because they are the ones who will determine who should be eliminated and who should stay and not DAP,” he said.

In the last elections, MCA only secured the Tanjung Malim parliamentary seat and Chenderiang state seat.

Earlier, around 8,000 people including those from 750 non-governmental organisations and Chinese associations from Perak attended the party’s mega gathering at the Ipoh Convention Centre here.

A large number of the turnout were Chinese Malaysians who looked to be on the older side of 30 to 60. They started gathering in the ballroom as early as 12.30pm.

Liow was met with a standing ovation and the thunderous beat of Chinese drums when he walked in at about 2pm.

He was accompanied by the party’s deputy president Wee Ka Siong, secretary-general Ong Ka Chuan, Wanita MCA chief Datuk Heng Seai Kie, Perak MCA chief Datuk Dr Mah Hang Soon.