FORMER MCA vice-president Datuk Seri Ti Lian Ker could not have been more precise when he claimed that DAP need not cooperate with the MCA because it has already become MCA 2.0.
In recent times, DAP leaders have made unsavoury remarks about MCA. They have dismissed the idea of working with the MCA, suggesting that DAP can thrive without the former, even within the unity government.
Historically, DAP carved out its political identity by contrasting itself with the MCA. While in opposition, DAP condemned the MCA as immoral, spineless and subservient to UMNO.
Yet, in a bizarre twist of political history, the very party that once derided the MCA has unconsciously adopted many of its features.
As part of the unity government, DAP is increasingly resembling what it once despised. The label “MCA 2.0” did not come from outsiders but from an insider like Ti himself – an observation that must have taken no small amount of courage.
DAP loses its fangs
It took Chinese voters more than four decades to turn away from MCA. But in less than two decades (since assuming power in Penang in 2008), DAP has revealed a version of itself that mirrors the MCA.
The difference is that while MCA has always openly claimed to represent the Chinese community, DAP projects itself as a multi-racial party – though its core identity remains largely Chinese – only thinly camouflaged by the inclusion of Malays and Indians.
In this sense, MCA is at least honest about what it is.
The moment DAP entered government, it abandoned some of its most sacred ideals: the vision of a Malaysian Malaysia, the fight for equal rights of non-Malays, its criticisms of Malay hegemony as well as other principles central to a more democratic and equitable Malaysia.
The pursuit of power, position, and perks has come at the cost of its moral compass.
If Ti is right that DAP has become MCA 2.0, then ironically, MCA – though politically weakened – appears to be raising more meaningful national issues today than in the past.
Perhaps it is time to re-think whether the label “MCA 2.0” truly captures the DAP of today – or whether the party has morphed into something far more complex and far less principled – than that. – Aug 26, 2025
Former DAP stalwart and Penang chief minister II Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy is chairman of the United Rights of Malaysian Party (Urimai) interim council.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia
Main image credit: Ti Lian Ker/Facebook
