Chew Mei Fun: Another May 13 if Chinese representation in BN is insufficient

One of the most popular MCA parliamentarians, Ms Chew Mei Fun of Petaling Jaya Utara has made a implicit warning to her Chinese voters on Sunday: ” if there is no sufficient Chinese representation in the Barisan Nasional, it is not a good thing, the Chinese community cannot afford another May 13 incident.“

Is she threatening the voters to vote BN with political violence? Has she breached the Election Offences Act 1954 which criminalizes “undue influence”? You judge.

The full translation of the news report is produced here.

The opposition [spreads] “checking Chinese with Chinese” statements

Chew Mei Fun: Afraid Voters May Be Misled

 

China Press, January 21, 2008 (Monday) Page A11.

 

Petaling Jaya, Jan 20 – MP for Petaling Jaya Utara Datin Paduka Chew Mei Fun said that although the voters in Petaling Jaya Utara are very supportive of Barisan Nasional, she is worried that voters may be misled by the Opposition’s “checking Chinese with Chinese” statement.

 

She refuted Opposition claims that voters can vote for the Opposition to teach UMNO a lesson, as well as to check UMNO’s power within the BN, but in actual fact, the move will result in “checking Chinese with Chinese”.

 

She stressed, “If there is insufficient Chinese representation in the Barisan Nasional, it is not a good thing, the Chinese community cannot afford another May 13 incident.”

 

She said that MCA under the leadership of Ong Ka Ting is keen to establish a healthy political culture, in order to give voters better service.

 

Chew Mei Fun is also the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development and the Deputy Chairman of Wanita MCA. As the head of the MAC Crisis Relief Squad, she launched the Squad’s first mobile clinic today. Her comments were made when she was asked about MCA President Dato’ Seri Ong Ka Ting’s endorsement of her to defend her parliamentary seat of Petaling Jaya Utara.

 

She said, she was grateful for the president’s trust in her and will strive to work even harder.

 

Section 9 (1) of the Election Offences Act 1954:

Undue influence

9. (1) Every person who, before, during or after an election, directly or indirectly, by himself or by any other person on his behalf, makes use of or threatens to make use of any force, violence, or restraint, or inflicts or threatens to inflict, by himself or by any other person, any temporal or spiritual injury, damage, harm, or loss upon or against any person in order to induce or compel such person to vote or refrain from voting, or on account of such person having voted or refrained from voting, at any election, or who by abduction, duress, or any fraudulent device or contrivance impedes or prevents the free exercise of the franchise of any elector or voter, or thereby compels, induces, or prevails upon any elector or voter either to give or refrain from giving his vote at any election, or who directly or indirectly interferes or attempts to interfere with the free exercise by any person of any electoral right shall be guilty of the offence of undue influence.