DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang (above) has denied wanting to contest in Bentong as claimed by MCA president Liow Tiong Lai yesterday.

Accusing Liow of “craving the limelight” and using him for self-promotion in making such a claim, Lim said he had never considered such a move.

“I am surprised that after MCA deputy president Wee Ka Siong’s self-directed and self-acted ‘drama’ alleging the possibility of DAP secretary-general and Chief Minister of Penang Lim Guan Eng contesting against him in Ayer Hitam, the MCA president Liow Tiong Lai also craved the limelight and (said) that I was going to contest against him in Bentong in the 14th general election (GE14).

“Can Liow cite chapter and verse as to when I had mentioned the possibility of my contesting in Bentong as this had never entered into my radar of possibilities for the GE14?

“Like Wee in the case of Guan Eng, has Liow (decided) to make use of me to promote himself?” Lim asked in a statement today.

Wee has denied saying that Guan Eng wanted to contest against him and claimed he was misquoted in interviews with Chinese daily China Press and MCA-owned English daily The Star. The papers have since apologised.

Liow, who is a four-term Bentong MP, said yesterday that he was unfazed by Lim's supposed challenge and was confident in being able to retain the support of the voters.

Lim disputed this, citing Liow’s dramatic decline in vote majority in the previous election.

“Liow’s election results in Bentong are most interesting and revealing.

“In the 1999, 2004 and 2008 general elections, Liow won Bentong with five-figure vote majorities - 10,715-vote majority in 1999; 16,839 in 2004 and 12,549 in 2008.

“However, in the 2013 general election, when faced DAP environmentalist candidate Wong Tack, Liow (photo below) was “lucky” to win with a 379-vote majority,” said the Gelang Patah MP.

Lim also rapped MCA over its apparent lack of support from Chinese voters.

‘Is MCA representing Umno?’

He cited that in the last election, the party’s present top leadership won in constituencies that had more Malay voters than Chinese voters, including Liow’s win in Bentong, Wee’s win in Ayer Hitam and MCA secretary-general Ong Ka Chuan’s win in Tanjong Malim.

“Is MCA representing the Chinese in BN?

“Or are MCA ministers and leaders representing Umno to the Malaysian Chinese?” Lim asked.

The last general election in 2013 was MCA’s poorest outing to date, with the party winning only seven parliamentary seats and 11 state seats.