UMNO NEVER BULLIED BN PARTNERS, SAYS PM

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 18 (Bernama) -- Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said Saturday Umno had never bullied its partners in the Barisan Nasional (BN) and blamed opposition parties for coming up with such an accusation to deny the people's support for the ruling coalition.

"People say Umno likes to bully. There is no such thing as bullying. If
that is the case, the other component parties would have left the BN a long time
ago. It is a strategy of the opposition parties. The issue did not originate
from the (BN) component parties.

"It started from the opposition parties, such as the DAP to tarnish the
MCA's image so that the people, especially the Chinese, dislike the MCA and the
BN leaders.

"Also, such as the group which calls itself Hindraf (Hindu Rights Action
Force), to belittle (MIC president S. Samy (Vellu) ... to hate the leaders. Do
you think Samy, (MCA president) Ong Ka Ting, (Gerakan president) Dr Koh Tsu Koon
want to be bullied? This point was brought up by the opposition to make the
people dislike the BN," said Abdullah in his speech when opening the 55th MCA
Annual General Assembly at the party headquarters at Wisma MCA, here.

He said the BN component parties can be deemed as close friends and nothing
can undermine their friendship, no matter what happens.

"The camaraderie (among the BN component parties) has never waned no matter
what happened. We understand that there are good times and there are not-so-good
times but the important thing is to be friends at all times," he said.

Abdullah related an incident which happened after the March 8 general
election when the MCA president met him and asked to retain the MCA quota of
ministers in the cabinet despite the party having lost badly in the elections.

"Ong came to see me when I was considering the members of the cabinet. He
said that though the MCA had lost, he as a leader wanted to see the MCA strong
again before he left, with the party regaining the support of the Chinese and,
as such, wanted the party's quota in the cabinet to be retained.

"I fulfilled this because even though the MCA had faced defeat, we wanted
to
retain the representatives of the component parties in the administration. This
means that in the BN we always ensure equal representation of all BN
components," he said.

He said a similar incident took place in 1999 when the MCA fared badly in
Penang in the 1999 elections.

At that time, Abdullah said, he asked Gerakan president Dr Koh Tsu Koon,
who was then Penang chief minister, to allocate a state executive councillor's
post to the MCA representative.

"When we face a problem, we resolve it together. If Umno has a problem, the
component parties help to resolve it. We feel most comfortable with the BN
consensus. This is a genuine commitment ... all of us have a common desire," he
said.

Abdullah said that for the BN to continue to exist and remain relevant,
it was necessary to retain this spirit and not use the strength as a weapon
to make
demands and pressure any component party.

The BN's strength should be augmented with the spirit of camaraderie to
make
the coalition a more effective ruling party that can bring greater development
for the country, he said.

"It is not that we have not faced problems all this while. Mistakes have
occurred. There have been shortcomings. However, overall, the good has
outweighed the lack. Otherwise, the country will not have achieved the
development it now enjoys," he said.

Abdullah said that as a responsible party, the BN should consider the
current situation and take steps to overcome and rectify all negative
perceptions of the party and, more importantly, ensure that it did not repeat
past mistakes and wrongs.

Referring to Ong, who is not seeking re-election, Abdullah said the MCA
president was not a weak leader but a strong and effective one.

"I do not want people to assume that he is a weak leader. It's true that he
does not speak in a rough manner. He harbours no hatred and neither is he
quarrelsome. Mild-mannered though he may be, he is effective ... one who always
raises matters regarding the Chinese community in the cabinet," he said.

Abdullah said the BN would introduce several changes in keeping with the
times.

"We have to consider the demands and aspirations of the new generation. We
have to respond well. These are the country's future leaders. If we want the
country to continue progressing, we have no option but to strengthen the BN," he
said.

DAP stands for opposittion Democratic Action Party, MCA is acronym for
Malaysian Chinese Association while MIC stands for Malaysian Indian Congress,
the latter two being BN component parties.
-- BERNAMA