It seemed to be an ephemeral dream for MCA leaders and central delegates as when they woke up from the dream, nothing seemed to have happened before.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak mediated the conflict and found MCA the fastest way to end the party crisis – President Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat and former Deputy President Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek to work as a team, as if the Disciplinary Board has never sacked Dr Chua, the 10 Oct Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) has never been held, the central delegates have never went to the MCA Headquarters, the resolution of voting no-confidence in Ong has never been passed, no one from the Central Committee has betrayed the President and there is nothing wrong with Ong's and Dr Chua's morality and integrity. Everything is fine as if nothing has happened.

For UMNO, the cooperation of Ong and Dr Chua can maintain the interests of BN. They can avoid causing the resentment from the Chinese community and help BN to fight for Chinese votes only after they have restored the team. UMNO has lost its patience to wait for MCA to solve its own party crisis. Moreover, convening another EGM will further split the party. Of course, Ong and Dr Chua believe that the cooperation will benefit them but not the third force.

However, could such a unity plan repair the rift within the party and let them forget all the acrimonies of the two factions over the past two months? How long the party would have to take to integrate? After the “great unity plan” was announced, the efforts of some secondary and grassroot leaders who shouted at the forefront have been wasted. What would the party members think? And they suddenly forgot about the hatred, shook hands and agreed to work together as a team after the chaos. Could they just manipulate the party like their own property?

At the same time, MCA leaders showed no principled stand during the party crisis. It will as well affect the party's credibility. The Opposition will definitely launch attack and the public's confidence in MCA will also be undermined.

The biggest winner of the party crisis should be Dr Chua as he used to be isolated in the party but now, his faction can share distributed benefits and positions, return to the mainstream and his morality problem will no longer be an issue. With his influence among the grassroots and after the strength of Ong and Deputy President Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai has been weakened, he should be able to return to the leadership core soon. He may also be the leader of all factions in the future.

Najib wants Dr Chua to go back shows that UMNO has faith in his leadership. When BN chose former Negeri Sembilan Menteri Besar Tan Sri Mohd Isa Samad as the candidate for the Bagan Pinang by-election, they did not take morality as the main condition. Instead, capability was the most important qualification. It is undeniable that after the EGM, some UMNO leaders had openly demanded the resignation of Ong. There is a rift between Ong and UMNO, and Dr Chua is needed to serve as a lubricant.

Youth Chief Datuk Dr Wee Ka Siong, Wanita Chief Datin Paduka Chew Mei Fun and other Ong faction leaders are losers in the crisis. Some of them have lost their prestige while some lost the positions which they were about to reach. And the central delegates are puzzled.

The twists and turns of the party crisis confirms that nothing is impossible in politics. However, such an outcome is just too ridiculous and hardly convincing. (By LIM SUE GOAN/Translated by SOONG PHUI JEE/Sin Chew Daily)