COMMENT | Everyone laughed when MCA announced it could start accepting non-Chinese into the party, but I wasn’t one of them. Granted, MCA is not accepting non-Chinese as full members; only associate members without voting rights.

Many criticisms point to the obvious: There is no demand for MCA in the membership market, nor will the inclusion of non-Chinese improve MCA’s image or chances in the election. I concur that MCA’s problems are more deep-seated than what a simple change of membership rules could resolve. But I also think that any consideration of efficacy is missing the point.

The crucial insight here is the inevitability of multiracialism as a prerequisite in all political parties.

What brought MCA from an electoral powerhouse to a dismal two-seat party, commonly a subject of ridicule, is more than a few embarrassed and impotent leaders. One of the primary reasons for its decline was the unsustainability of its...