Wee Ka Siong

Wee Ka Siong (Chinese: 魏家祥; pinyin: Wèi Jiāxiáng; born 20 October 1968) is a Malaysian politician currently serving as Minister of Transport since March 2020. He has been the Member of Parliament for Ayer Hitam since March 2004. [1] He also served as Minister in the Prime Minister's Department from June 2014 to the collapse of the Barisan Nasional (BN) administration in May 2018. He was the Deputy Minister for Education from 2008 to 2013. He has been the President of the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA), a party in Malaysia's ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, elected during the party election in November 2018.[2]

This is a Chinese name; the family name is Wee (魏).

Yang Berhormat Datuk Seri Ir. Dr. Wee Ka Siong DMSM DGSM MP
魏家祥
Minister of Transport
Incumbent
Assumed office 10 March 2020
Monarch	Abdullah
Prime Minister	Muhyiddin Yassin
Deputy	Hasbi Habibollah
Preceded by	Anthony Loke Siew Fook
Constituency	Ayer Hitam
Minister in the Prime Minister's Department
In office 27 June 2014 – 10 May 2018
Monarch	Abdul Halim Muhammad V
Prime Minister	Najib Razak
Preceded by	Position Established
Succeeded by	Position Abolished
Constituency	Ayer Hitam
Deputy Minister of Education
In office 19 March 2008 – 15 May 2013 Serving with Razali Ismail (2008–2009) Mohd Puad Zarkashi (2009–2013)
Monarch	Mizan Zainal Abidin Abdul Halim
Prime Minister	Abdullah Ahmad Badawi Najib Razak
Minister	Hishammuddin Hussein (2008–2009) Muhyiddin Yassin (2009–2013)
Preceded by	Hon Choon Kim
Succeeded by	Kamalanathan Panchanathan
Constituency	Ayer Hitam
President of the Malaysian Chinese Association
Incumbent
Assumed office 4 November 2018
Deputy	Mah Hang Soon
Preceded by	Liow Tiong Lai
Constituency	Ayer Hitam
Deputy President of the Malaysian Chinese Association
In office 21 December 2013 – 3 November 2018
President	Liow Tiong Lai
Preceded by	Liow Tiong Lai
Succeeded by	Mah Hang Soon
Constituency	Ayer Hitam
Youth Chief of the Malaysian Chinese Association
In office 13 October 2008 – 21 December 2013
President	Ong Tee Keat Chua Soi Lek
Deputy	Mah Hang Soon
Preceded by	Liow Tiong Lai
Succeeded by	Chong Sin Woon
Constituency	Ayer Hitam
Member of the Malaysian Parliament for Ayer Hitam
Incumbent
Assumed office 21 March 2004
Preceded by	Constituency established
Majority	15,763 (2004) 13,909 (2008) 7,310 (2013) 303 (2018)
Personal details
Born	Wee Ka Siong (1968-10-20) 20 October 1968 Jasin, Malacca, Malaysia
Nationality	Malaysian
Political party	Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA)
Other political affiliations	Barisan Nasional (BN) Perikatan Nasional (PN)
Spouse(s)	Jessica Lim Hai Ean (林海燕)
Children	2
Residence	Johor Bahru, Johor (Hometowns: Tampin, Negeri Sembilan and Jasin, Malacca)
Alma mater	Universiti Teknologi Malaysia Nanyang Technological University
Occupation	Politician
Website	weekasiong.com.my

Biography

He was born in Jasin, Melaka to a Hakka clan and later brought up in Tampin, Negeri Sembilan. He attended the SJK(C) Yu Hsien primary school and Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Datuk Bendahara Jasin, Melaka.

He studied Civil Engineering at the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) in 1986–1991. He later pursued his Master in Traffic Engineering at the Nanyang Technological University, Singapore from 1993 to 1996 and a PhD in Transportation Planning at the UTM from 1996 to 2001. He is a qualified Civil Engineer and is a member of the Board of Engineering Malaysia (BEM).

He is married to Datin Seri Jessica Lim Hai Ean (林海燕), a lawyer and they have 2 children, a daughter and a son.

MCA career

Wee, who speaks Malay, English and Mandarin, begin his political career in the Johor Bahru Malaysian Chinese Association, which he joined in 1992.. He was its Secretary General (Johor Bahru Division) from 1993 to 2005. After that, he is elected as Johor Bahru's MCA Majidi Branch chairman from 1996 to 2008, and became the MCA Johor Bahru Division Youth Chief from 2002 to 2008.

In 2005 during the National MCA Youth election, he was elected as the National MCA Youth Wing Secretary General, and was appointed as the National MCA Youth Education Bureau Chief (2005–2008). He was awarded The Outstanding Young Malaysian (TOYM) Award (Politics, Governmental Affairs & Legal) (马来西亚十大杰出青年奖) by the Junior Chamber International Malaysia; this award was presented to him by Dato' Sri Ong Tee Keat, then Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports, in Kuala Lumpur on 25 November 2005.

On 13 October 2008, Wee was elected unopposed as the MCA Youth Chief for the 2008–2011 term, taking over the position from the Health Minister, Dato' Sri Liow Tiong Lai. On 11 November 2008, Wee Ka Siong was elected to lead the MCA Malacca State Liaison Committee.[3] Prior to this, he was the secretary general for Malaysia Chinese Association Youth Wing.

In 2013, he contested, and won, the deputy presidency of the full party.[4]

Deputy Education Minister (2008–2013)

Under the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, he was given the mandate to continue leading the Education Ministry as a Deputy Education Minister along with Dr. Mohd Puad Zarkashi. Its Education minister is the former Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

As minister, he reversed the decision to close the SJKC Damansara School, closed in 2001 because it "no longer provided a conducive learning environment because of traffic jams and noise pollution" due to a nearby trunk road. Its closure was opposed by some parents, who refused to transfer their children to its replacement.[5] When it reopened in late 2009, it was renamed 'SJKC Chung Hwa'.[6] He was given the mandate by the cabinet to handle and execute the Government's stimulus package in November last year that RM200mil will be given out in equal measure to Chinese, Tamil, religious (Sekolah Agama) and Mubaligh (missionary) schools (each medium schools will be given RM50 Million).

Cabinet Minister (2014–2018)

After the MCA's disastrous performance in the 2013 election, losing eight of its fifteen seats, the MCA voluntarily withdrew from its ministerial positions. The party returned in 2014 and Wee, by then the deputy president of the party, was appointed to the Cabinet as Minister in the Department of Prime Minister Najib Razak.[7]

After months of public speculations about Wee's health, on 2 May 2016 he made a statement that he would undergo a spinal surgery abroad and promised he will recover and return to duty soon.[8][9][10]

Wee Ka Siong is the only member of MCA to hold a seat in the parliament after the Malaysian general election in May 2018.[11] On 22 August, Wee Ka Siong publicly announced that it is better for Malaysia to proceed with the ECRL and Gas Pipeline projects instead of postponing it because he believes it will adversely affect ties with China.[12]

Election results

Parliament of Malaysia: P148 Ayer Hitam, Johor[13][14][15][16]

Year			Votes	Pct	Opponent(s)		Votes	Pct	Ballots cast	Majority	Turnout
2004		Wee Ka Siong (MCA)	20,065	82.34%		Mohd Zamri Mat Taksis (PAS)	4,302	17.66%	25,218	15,763	76.87%
2008		Wee Ka Siong (MCA)	20,230	76.11%		Hussin Sujak (PAS)	6,321	23.78%	27,488	13,909	78.98%
2013		Wee Ka Siong (MCA)	22,045	59.79%		Hu Pang Chaw (PAS)	14,735	39.96%	37,839	7,310	88.18%
2018		Wee Ka Siong (MCA)	17,076	43.98%		Liew Chin Tong (DAP)	16,773	43.20%	38,824	303	85.52%
						Hj Mardi Marwan (PAS)	4,975	12.82%

Honours

•  Malacca :
  • Companion Class I of the Order of Malacca (DMSM) - Datuk (2008)[17]
  • Grand Commander of the Order of Malacca (DGSM) - Datuk Seri (2015)[18]

See also

• Ayer Hitam (federal constituency)

External links

• 家祥部落格 Wee Ka Siong Blog
• 魏家祥蓝色希望

References

1. "SEATING ARRANGEMENT OF MEMBERS OF HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES". Retrieved 22 March 2016.
2. "MCA polls: New leaders will bring a breath of fresh air, says Lee". The Star. 22 December 2013. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
3. ‘Old and new’ formula for Malacca MCA to regain seats, The Star (Malaysia), 22 November 2008
4. "MCA polls: Former health minister Liow Tiong Lai is new president". asiaone. 21 December 2013. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
5. Tan Ee Loo (6 December 2008). Sec 17 school now called Chung Hwa, The Star (Malaysia)
6. Yeng Ai Chun (6 January 2009). "Government kept its word, says Wee" The Star (Malaysia)
7. Akil Yunus (14 October 2014). "Dr Wee's first 100 days challenging, but minister happy with progress". The Star. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
8. FOONG PEK YEE (2 May 2016). "Dr Wee to undergo spinal surgery". The Star. Retrieved 11 August 2014.
9. KOI KYE LEE (2 May 2016). "MCA deputy president to undergo spinal surgery this week". New Straits Times. Retrieved 11 August 2014.
10. "Wee Ka Siong to undergo spinal surgery". Free Malaysia Today. 2 May 2016. Retrieved 11 August 2014.
11. Foong Pek Yee (2 June 2018). "Wee: MCA had no room to say 'no' in the past". The Star.
12. FMT Reporters (22 August 2018). "MCA: ECRL cancellation will affect ties with China". Free Malaysia Today.
13. "Keputusan Pilihan Raya Umum Parlimen/Dewan Undangan Negeri" (in Malay). Election Commission of Malaysia. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
14. "Keputusan Pilihan Raya Umum Parlimen/Dewan Undangan Negeri" (in Malay). Election Commission of Malaysia. Retrieved 1 May 2010.
15. "KEPUTUSAN PILIHAN RAYA UMUM 13". Sistem Pengurusan Maklumat Pilihan Raya Umum. Election Commission of Malaysia. Retrieved 24 March 2017.
16. "Malaysia General Election". undiinfo Malaysian Election Data. Malaysiakini. Retrieved 4 February 2017. Results only available from the 2004 election.
17. "Datukship for Shah Rukh Khan". The Star. 11 October 2008. Retrieved 11 September 2018.
18. "Dr Wee gets Malacca award". The Star. 10 October 2015. Retrieved 11 September 2018.

Political offices
Preceded by Liow Tiong Lai	Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) President 4 November 2018 – Incumbent	Succeeded by