The owner of top-selling Chinese daily Sin Chew Jit Poh , timber tycoon Tiong Hiew King, has finally broken his silence on the controversial takeover of rival newspaper group Nanyang Press by MCA.

In an interview with Hong Kong-based Yazhou Zhoukan - a Chinese regional magazine, also owned by Tiong - the media mogul conceded that he was interested in taking over Nanyang.

He said that he had sought to buy 51 percent of Nanyang from its former owner Quek Leng Chan a few years ago.

"We failed to reach a deal after several discussions. This round, however, at least four groups were competing (for Nanyang), but I was not involved," he told Yazhou Zhoukan .

Last week, the second biggest party in the ruling coalition, MCA, bought 72 percent of Nanyang for RM230 million in cash from Quek.

The contentious takeover has drawn widespread opposition who fear for the independence of the two Chinese dailies under Nanyang - Nanyang Siang Pau and China Press .

Tiong's Sin Chew Jit Poh has also been accused by opposition groups of backing the deal especially when some of its top managers took over operations of Nanyang immediately after the acquisition was made.

Still keen

Tiong, who is also the owner of Hong Kong's fourth largest daily Ming Pao , added that he was still interested in Nanyang.

However, he said if MCA wanted him to help run its newly acquired operations, he must be given a major stake in the company.

Yesterday, MCA chief Dr Ling Liong Sik said that his political party is ready to divest the majority of its Nanyang stake to "strategic partners". He called on interested parties to send their proposals within 10 days.

In the Yazhou Zhoukan interview, Tiong also refuted the accusation that by taking over its rival, the Chinese media in Malaysia would be in danger of turning into a monolithic voice.

"In running the Sin Chew Jit Poh , Hong Kong's Ming Pao and Yazhou Zhoukan , I place emphasis on the independence of the editorial team, and (they) never become a monolithic voice," he said.

Of the four major Chinese dailies, Sin Chew Jit Poh and Guang Ming Daily are published by Tiong's Pemandangan Sinar while Nanyang Siang Pau and China Press are published by rival media group Nanyang Press.

Tiong insisted that the merger of both publishing groups would be beneficial to the Chinese community in terms of reducing cut-throat competition and creating a win-win situation.

"If the two groups of newspapers do not fight each others, it would increase the negotiation power of Chinese community in politics, economy and culture," he said.

Not perturbed

The media tycoon, who is a former politician aligned to the ruling coalition, said he was not perturbed by the idea of a political party owning a media group.

"It would be presumptuous to say the cooperation with the political parties would mean the papers are being controlled by them," he said, giving the example of MCA-owned The Star , the most popular English-language daily today.

Tiong said that it is only through consolidation and mergers, that the Chinese media will have a place in the international media.

"However, some people want to dance to the tune of Western media, and are not willing to see the expansion of Chinese media," he lamented.

"Previously I have not only tried to take over Nanyang, but I have also been searching for chances in Europe, America, China, Australia and Southeast Asia," he said.

Conflicting claims

On why Sin Chew had played down the controversial takeover over the past few weeks, he explained that the newspaper seldom publishes news about its rival.

"Especially given that Nanyang is a public-listed company, the ( Sin Chew ) editors are worried it might affect the market," he added.

In an immediate reaction, the Committee Against Takeover of Nanyang Press by MCA (CAT) said Tiong's Yazhou Zhoukan interview conflicted with Sin Chew 's earlier clarification.

"Our previous dialogue with the Sin Chew management and its clarification on May 30 had given us the impression that the newspaper has no interest in taking over Nanyang and monopolising the Chinese media," said CAT chairperson Tang Ah Chai.

"If Tiong eventually takes over Nanyang, Sin Chew would have misled its readers," he added.