Materia Medica Malaysiana

Reports link Jui Meng's exit to feng shui and political careers

Former Health Minister Datuk Chua Jui Meng's exit from the Cabinet generated a host of reports in the Chinese dailies yesterday, including those touching on the co-relations of “feng shui” and political careers.

Sin Chew Daily, with a front-page headline which read “Chua Soi Lek replaces Chua Jui Meng,” ran a story along the lines that the two men shared the same surname.

The daily also highlighted that MCA ministers who held the post of health minister always saw the end of their political careers.

The daily ran a list of MCA MPs who had been appointed to the post from 1977 and detailed how all of them were “banished politically” after taking up the position.

First on the list was former MCA deputy president Tan Sri Lee Siok Yew, who lost his Cabinet post within 24 hours after having fallen out of favour with then party president Datuk Lee San Choon in 1977.

Subsequent health ministers were dropped after one term in office, sacked following internal party conflicts, not nominated as candidates or defeated during general elections.

The daily named Chua as the latest casualty, adding that his predecessor, Tan Sri Lee Kim Sai, had advised him to consult a “feng shui” master when handing over the post to him.

It is learnt that Chua had indeed consulted a “feng shui” master twice during his two-term tenure as Health Minister from 1995 to 2004. He has been the longest serving Health Minister.

Nanyang Siang Pau reported that friends and relatives of Chua were shocked and saddened that he was dropped from the Cabinet line-up.

In a news analysis, the daily concluded that Chua, who was viewed as the “third force” in the aftermath of the party's two-year power struggle, was sacrificed for the sake of unity in MCA.