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Date Posted: 20:04:28 10/20/06 Fri
Author: (President from Sept. 1986 - May 2003) (Ling Liong Sik)
Subject: Datuk Seri Dr Ling Liong Sik (President from Sept. 1986 - May 2003)
In reply to: Your Source of Independent News 's message, "Decision to buy Nanyang not a mistake, says Ling" on 00:12:28 10/20/06 Fri

Datuk Seri Dr Ling Liong Sik (President from Sept. 1986 - May 2003)


1943: He was born in Kuala Kangsar, Perak.

1966: He graduated as a medical doctor from University of Singapore. Subsequently, he set up his practice in Penang where he joined MCA as a member.

1974: He was elected as Member of Parliament for Mata Kuching constituency. He successfully defended his position in 1978 and 1982.

1986: He was elected MP for Labis. He also subsequently successfully defended his position in the 1990, 1995 and 1999 general elections.

1986: He was appointed Transport Minister. Prior to that, he had held the position of Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Local Government and Federal, Territory, Deputy Information Minister, Deputy Finance Minister and Deputy Education Minister.

Dr Ling is an MCA leader noted for his political vision and conviction, a strong believer of moderation and pragmatism. His crisis management capability earned him the reputation of a problem solver of the MCA. Under Dr Ling's leadership, the MCA successfully overcame several crises that truly tested his mettle. He took over the reins in 1986, right after the devastating 20-month leadership crisis sparked off by the existence of phantom membership. The party was at its lowest ebb, morale was low and so were finances. The worst was yet to come. The first test came when 24 deposit-taking co-operatives initiated by the Chinese were frozen by Bank Negara, putting billions of ringgit deposited by their members in jeopardy. The MCA under Dr Ling's leadership fought relentlessly to help the 500,000 depositors in getting a ringgit-to-ringgit refund, bringing a sigh of relief to the Chinese community.

At the end of 1989, another crisis exploded when the bank took action against the MCA over a RM36-million loan. The problem, an aftermath of the 1984-85 leadership crisis, was aggravated by the 1985 recession. To solve the problem once and for all, Dr Ling launched a nation-wide life membership recruitment campaign raising funds and through restructuring of Party assets enabling the Party to resolve its financial problems.

After solving all the crises in the 1980s, Dr Ling concentrated his effort to prepare the MCA for a take off into the 1990s and beyond and joined the government effort in nation building.

To assist Dr Ling's leadership, Insap was set up in 1989 and was given the task to draw up the blueprint for National Unity. The four main thrusts of the master plan were (1) to defuse the differences among the various communities especially among the Bumiputras and non-Bumiputras by ensuring each community is free to practise its culture, tradition and faith to establish a truly Malaysian society; (2) to establish a fair and democratic society which guarantees equal opportunities to all the communities in political, economical, cultural and educational advancement so that none will feel deprived; (3) to create a caring society so that the hardcore poor will get help and assistance; (4) to create a high-tech, progressive and prosperous society which is both vibrant and competitive.

In December 1988, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir set up the National Economic Consultative Council comprising 150 members from various communities. The Council formulated the National Development Policy in place of the New Economic Policy covering the period from 1991 to the year 2000. The NDP laid the ground work for the rapid economic development of Malaysia in the 1990s. The NDP was later replaced by the Third Outline Perspective Plan (2001 - 2010).

Another major contribution by Dr Ling was the launching of the MCA Langkawi Educational Project and the rapid expansion of Tunku Abdul Rahman College. Under the Langkawi Project, the MCA mobilise all its resources in a new commitment to raise the standard of education among the Chinese especially those in the rural areas. Under this massive programme, resources centres with tuition classes and computers were set up to help the needy students. University students were mobilised to help the rural students and parents were encouraged to take extra care in the children's studies.

The Tunku Abdul Rahman College was set up on February 4, 1969 in Kuala Lumpur to cater mainly for Chinese students who did not have the opportunity for tertiary education locally or overseas. In 1991, the Government allocated RM20 million under the Six Malaysia Plan for the college. Under Dr Ling's leadership, a total of RM30 million was raised by the MCA in a series of fund-raising campaigns. This was matched by the Government on a ringgit-to-ringgit basis, bringing the total to RM60 million. Under a massive development plan, the Tunku Abdul Rahman College spreads its campuses to Johor, Penang, Perak and Pahang.

Under Dr Ling's stewardship, the MCA also played a crucial role in the amendments to the Education Act 1961 which guarantees the continued development of Chinese primary schools. Dr Ling's leadership also contributed significantly towards the liberalisation of tertiary education which saw the establishment of the New Era College and the Southern College. Both were initiated by the Chinese community.

Promoting Chinese Culture
Dr Ling initiated a series of activities to forge a closer rapport with the Chinese educational organisations, guilds and associations to initiate changes to the community. A major campaign was the Chinese Reform and Innovation Movement aimed at improving the Chinese society.

In response to the severe challenges faced by the nation in the current financial and economic crisis the MCA under Dr Ling has been steadfast in supporting the Government. Patriotic rallies were held by the Wanita MCA, Buy Malaysian Campaign was organised by MCA Youth and seminars were held to explain the crisis and rally support.


The crowning success of Dr Ling's leadership is evident in the outstanding result of the 1995 general elections in which the party won 30 of the 35 allocated parliamentary seats and 70 of the 77 state seats. It is also reflected in the close rapport between MCA and UMNO leadership.

In November 1999, the General Elections' results demonstrated that the MCA under the national stewardship of Dr. Ling once again won the support and trust of the Chinese electorate. The people expressed confidence in the BN coalition by voting 28 Parliamentary and 68 State representatives out of the 35 Parliamentary and 77 State seats MCA contested respectively.

Publications

The Malaysian Chinese - Towards Vision 2020

Content:
1. Building on the Past
2. Liberalization and Deregulation
3. A Vision For the 1990s
4. Building a Truly National Economy through Co-operation
5. The Challenge Ahead
6. Serving the Community and the Nation
7. Working with the community
8. Improving Educational Opportunities
9. More Malaysian, No Less Chinese
10. Towards a Global Perspective
11. Nature of Malaysian Chinese Culture
12. A Salute to Mothers
13. The Importance of Education
14. Expanding the Tunku Abdul Rahman College
15. Economic Policies After the NEP
16. Towards Globalization

Preface:

WE MALAYSIAN CHINESE can be proud of our heritage. The Malaysian Chinese community has always been blessed with highly motivated leaders willing to work selflessly for the good of others. In particular during turbulent times, Tun Tan Cheng Lock emerged in the darkest days of the Emergency and formed the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) to look after the interests of the community. Always remember, we are now following in the footsteps of these leaders who worked unstintingly for the good of Malaysians of Chinese descent in times much tougher than ours. Our own efforts may seem small and insignificant in comparison to the sacrifices those early leaders made for the good of our present generation, but they are no less important.

Thanks to the hard work of our predecessors, and especially their determination to co-operate with Malaysians of all ethnic groups, many of the evils the nation's leaders fought to overcome in those early days, such as widespread poverty and narrow communalism, have been largely defeated. Of course, this is no reason for complacency. There are still poor and underprivileged Malaysians living in the New Villages, and at times there seems to be no shortage of ambitious politicians willing to exploit communal sentiments for their own ends. We have the heavy responsibility of working with all Malaysians to guard the peace and harmony of our nation and face the challenges of the future.

Much of this book is concerned with the challenges presented by the new world economic order and the new issues we face as we enter the 21st century and a new millennium. We in the MCA have a vision for the Chinese Community. We forsee a day when the Chinese community will be united politically and work in unison with the other races to build the first multi-ethnic developed nation in the world. Prime Minister Dr Mahatir Mohamad's Vision 2020 challenges us all to work together to create a strong and industrialized economy. Our entrepreneurs are also seeking out new markets for Malaysian products at a time when the opening up of countries such as Cambodia, Vietnam and China is presenting greater competition to Malaysia's efforts to attract foreign investors. Meanwhile, the National Development Policy, which replaced the New Economic Policy, presents every Malaysian with opportunities, not only for physical and material advancement, but also for the further development of a truly Malaysian culture. Being more Malaysian will not make us less Chinese, Malay or Indian. Instead, it will enrich our lives and help strengthen the ties that bind our multiracial society together. However, mere economic success can also bring a dangerous sense of complacency and family breakup as is occurring in many Western countries. In short, while the future is a bright one, it will require our continued dedication to ensure that our goals are achieved.



WILL of IRON


Dato' Seri Dr. Ling Liong Sik, an elected people's representative since 1974, is a senior Malaysian cabinet minister. He is the president of the second largest political party in Malaysia, the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA), with a total membership nearing 650,000 Malaysians of Chinese origin. Though he is the highest-ranking political leader of the Malaysian Chinese community, he performs effectively as an all-rounded Malaysian political leader. Ling is a man with strong principles, and putting principle above popularity is his style. He stands firm in defending the constitutional rights of Malaysian Chinese citizens and at the same time works very hard at promoting racial unity in Malaysia. He believes ardently in building a strong and united Malaysian nation. He always stresses that the diversity of the Malaysian plural society has emerged as a source of strength for the country and not as an obstacle to progress. He has succeeded in instilling confidence in the Malaysian Chinese community - that today, the Malaysian Chinese are no less Chinese, but instead are more Malaysian.

Ling, as a person, is well-known for his values of humility, hard work, sincerity, respect for others, having a caring attitude, being positive in his thinking and having a visionary outlook. A cool and calm leader, he is determined to serve the people and to build a strong Malaysian society and hence a strong nation. And he has the will of iron to achieve it.











MALAYSIAN CHINESE ASSOCIATION HEADQUARTERS
8th Floor, Wisma MCA, 163, Jalan Ampang, 50450 Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia. Tel: (603) - 21618044 Fax: (603) - 21619772 © 1996-2006
Malaysian Chinese Association. All rights reserved.
Website - http://mca.org.my/president/pastpresidents.asp

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