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CMs, DPMs and PMs: Time to go beyond the old taboos

By Farish A. Noor

WHEN the opportunity presented itself for Malaysia to choose a Malaysian woman of South Asian origin to be made the country’s first astronaut, those responsible for the final decision stepped back before the seemingly-insurmountable wall of taboos and inherited petty wisdom. No, they opined, we should choose a Malaysian Male Muslim Malay instead, as this would reflect the demographic realities of the country. But by doing so, they not only reflected the demographic realities of the day, but also confirmed the hegemony of that reality and thus rendered it absolute and unquestionable.

Now think of the possible alternatives had the Malaysian-Indian woman be chosen instead: For a start it would point to the demographic realities many of us would have wanted to see; and it would have been such a powerful symbolic message sent to Malaysia and the world. Had the other candidate been chosen, we could have proudly proclaimed that this was a country where racial and ethnic divisions had been transcended, and where gender equality was within reach. It would also have been such an enormous boost to the pride and sense of self-worth of so many other marginalised minority groupings in the country, to see themselves mirrored in the national narrative and to be made to feel that they truly belonged to a Malaysia that was indeed a country for all races. But no: Sadly, once again, the powers that be did the familiar cop-out and conceded to their own misguided belief in the old taboos.

The debate over who should be made chief minister of Perak, which has been going on for a week now, points to the same sort of intellectual and psycho-social impasse that has kept Malaysia paralysed for so long. Despite winning the biggest number of state assembly seats in the state, the DAP was not allowed to nominate one of its own to the post. The grounds for this realpolitik consideration happens to be a legal provision in the Perak constitution that apparently precludes the possibility of a non-Malay and non-Muslim from assuming the post of chief minister, even if her/his party won all the seats in the state assembly. Continue reading “CMs, DPMs and PMs: Time to go beyond the old taboos”

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More seats won by MCA will only result in worsening Umno political hegemony

(Media Conference Statement by DAP Parliamentary candidate for Ipoh Timur Lim Kit Siang at the DAP Ipoh Timur Ops Centre on Wednesday, March 5, 2008 at 1.30 pm)

When MCA should be most influential and powerful after the 1999 general election when Chinese voters saved Umno and Barisan Nasional to ensure their getting two-thirds parliamentary majority, MCA was weakest in allowing the rise of Umno political hegemony

New Straits Times has turned into a MCA and Barisan Nasional (BN) propaganda broadsheet today with the front-page headline: “Chinese voters have a simple c hoice: a bigger say in parliament and government, or a louder voice in parliament without real influence…”

Quoting the MCA strategist, Datuk Wong Mook Leong,said “the reality was that whenever the DAP did better than MCA, it was a major setback for the community”.

Wong said: “In 1986, DAP won 24 seats while MCA got 18. In 1990, DAP continued to lead MCA by two parliamentary seats.

“DAP claims that in those two terms, it was a major step for democracy. But the truth is, it was two terms of major setbacks for the Chinese community.”

This is a very dishonest distortion of Malaysian political history. Continue reading “More seats won by MCA will only result in worsening Umno political hegemony”

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RTM’s CNY misrepresentation of Malaysian Chinese

Letters
by Oldtimer

I am appalled by the way the government misrepresented
the culture of the Chinese. On the second day of
Chinese New Year, at 9pm, RTM broadcasted the Panorama
programme which showed what a “typical” Malaysian
Chinese family preparing for Chinese New Year. Instead
of showing a typical Chinese family, they purposely
showed a Muslim Chinese family and passing the family
off as a typical family. They showed the food
preparations and, of course, did not show any pork
dishes. How can you not show pork dishes for Chinese
new year? They also did not show the people going to
temple and worship their ancestors. Instead they tried
to show this Chinese Muslim family celebrating Chinese
New Year the Muslim way.

I have nothing against Chinese Muslim, but they are a
minority among Chinese Malaysians, and do not
represent the majority of Chinese Malaysians.

It is appalling the way RTM is trying to manipulate
the true picture of the Malaysian Chinese. They
purposely did not show the three key elements- pork,
temples and ancestors worship.

If the government is trying to promote Islam among the
Chinese population here they have in fact, created a
bad impression of Muslims in Malaysia. It just showed
how shallow the government’s commitment to plural
society and religious and cultural freedom. By passing
off the Chinese Muslim as a typical Chinese family in
Malaysia, they have gone to the extreme. Continue reading “RTM’s CNY misrepresentation of Malaysian Chinese”

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CNY messages by BN leaders – evidence that 50 yr nation-building gone very wrong or even lost its way

If more evidence are needed to illustrate that after 50 years, Malaysian nation-building has gone very wrong and even lost its way, the latest proofs are provided by the Chinese New Year messages by the Prime Minister and UMNO President, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, the Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting, the Energy, Water and Communications Minister and Gerakan adviser, Datuk Seri Dr. Lim Keng Yaik and even the Works Minister and MIC President, Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu.

Abdullah said that as the Prime Minister, he was committed towards creating a Malaysian community that was dynamic, progressive and lived in peace and harmony and strongly upheld the Malaysian cultural traditions.

“I will continue to redouble efforts so that we can continue to move forward and gain the respect of the international community in all aspects,” he added.

If a national opinion poll is conducted, can Abdullah get a majority from the (i) Malaysian Chinese and (ii) the Malaysian populace as a whole to believe in the Prime Minister’s Chinese New Year pledge, especially when there is unprecedented widespread skepticism and cynicism of his commitment to create a Malaysian community that is “dynamic, progressive and lived in peace and harmony and strongly upheld the Malaysian cultural traditions”.

In fact, I have no doubt that if Malaysians are asked whether the Malaysia community has become more “dynamic, progressive and lived in peace and harmony and strongly upheld the Malaysian cultural traditions” in the past four years, the overwhelming majority will give a loud and negative “No” – what with the coming of somnabulant premiership, the rise of Little Napoleons and Little Mullah Napoleons (LMNs), declining international competitiveness, endemic crime and increasing frequency of incidents like bible-banning, body-snatching and insensitive Islamist manifestations like the half-way halt in the construction of the world’s tallest Mazu statue in Kudat, Sabah. Continue reading “CNY messages by BN leaders – evidence that 50 yr nation-building gone very wrong or even lost its way”

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Wo Men Du Shi Yi Jia Ren

by penarik beca

Gong Xi Fa Chai

Xin Nien Jin Bu (May the New Lunar Year bring us progress).

Wan Shi Ru Yi (Everything is just as what you wish)

Wo Men Du Shi Yi Jia Ren (We are all one family)

Po Jiu Lin Xin (Break the old and establish the new)

Gong Xi Fa Chai, at this blessed moments as “the era of cheap food is over”.

Gong Xi Fa Chai, at this blessed moments as the roti canai gets smaller, Milo and Nescafe gets diluted.

Gong Xi Fa Chai at this blessed moments when our country enjoys a whopping 13 percent spike in violent crimes and the Prime Minister can do no better than asking “Apa yang sedang berlaku? Mengapa tinggi sangat?”

Gong Xi Fa Chai, at this blessed moments as the crime rate shot up by an even more alarming 45 percent in the four years of (Datuk Seri) Abdullah (Ahmad Badawi) premiership.

Gong Xi Fa Chai, at this blessed moments when the IGP proudly told us, “Imej PDRM tidak tercalar” [sic!]

Gong Xi Fa Chai at this blessed moments when the Prime Minister told us, “Don’t use crime rate as poll gimmick”.

Gong Xi Fa Chai at this blessed moments when the police force wages a war on peaceful rallies and not crime.

Gong Xi Fa Chai at this blessed moments when we are nowhere to claim there is no acute corruption problem in this country – thanks to the PM unforgiving effort to curb corruption. And, please dont say he has forgotten what his mother told him, “Kerja baik-baik, jangan selalu berbangga diri dan jangan lupakan orang bawah.” Continue reading “Wo Men Du Shi Yi Jia Ren”

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A Malay view of ‘Ketuanan Melayu’

Azly Rahman

‘O people! Your God is one and your forefather (Adam) is one. An Arab is not better than a non-Arab and a non-Arab is not better than an Arab, and a red (i.e. white tinged with red) person is not better than a black person and a black person is not better than a red person, except in piety. Indeed the noblest among you is the one who is deeply conscious of God.’ – a saying of Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon Him)

‘Malaysia – to whom does it belong? To Malaysians. But who are Malaysians? I hope I am, Mr Speaker, Sir. But sometimes, sitting in this chamber, I doubt whether I am allowed to be a Malaysian. This is the doubt that hangs over many minds, and … [once] emotions are set in motion, and men pitted against men along these unspoken lines, you will have the kind of warfare that will split the nation from top to bottom and undo Malaysia.’ – Lee Kuan Yew, now Senior Minister, Republic of Singapore

Instead of defining Ketuanan Melayu as ‘Malay superiority’ which is quite meaningless, philologically inaccurate, and philosophically arrogant, I think the word ‘dictatorship’ is closer in meaning. As you read this piece, please refrain from value judgment and from bring trapped in the prison-house of language pertaining to the word ‘dictatorship’.

To dictate connotes to tell, which connotes to narrate. To narrate means to weave a story based on an ideology. To ideologise means to encapsulate. To encapsulate means to be trap. Dictatorship, here might also mean an entrapment. Instead of acknowledging one’s freedom to rule, one is acknowledging being in an entrapment – and to rule out of that condition. This is a form of false consciousness.

Words, as a literary theorist Raymond Williams might say, must also be contextualised/situated within the economic condition they emerge in. Marx’s famous dictum that human beings’ existence is defined by the economic condition they are in and that this condition is already predetermined. This is a deterministic view of human history.

I first read heard the phrase Ketuanan Melayu in the mid-1980s from a book by one Malik Munip. I was reading his work, at the same time reading Lim Kit Siang’s ‘Malaysia in the dangerous 80s’, to get a sense of the argument. I was an undergraduate reading Literature, Education and International Politics.

I also heard that Malay students were discouraged from reading Kit Siang’s work and encouraged to read ‘Ketuanan Melayu’. I love banned books and books that others tell me not to read. There is a sense of intellectual challenge to be able to read banned books. Continue reading “A Malay view of ‘Ketuanan Melayu’”

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CNY message – “Mother” of all ang pows to nation and future generations

This is my 42nd year in politics and the tenth and probably last general election which I will be contesting when Parliament is dissolved some time this month.

I have only one wish for the Year of the Rat – let Malaysian Chinese and all Malaysians give the biggest ang pow of all – the “mother” of all ang pows – to the nation and future generations by voting for change in the 12th general election so that Malaysians can stand united and tall to face the challenges of globalization.

Let us make the 2008 Chinese New Year the most significant of all Chinese New Years in the country particularly as it coincides with the nation’s 50th Merdeka anniversary to mark a political coming-of-age with a political will and commitment by Malaysian Chinese together with all Malaysians to usher in real change after 50 years of failure to fulfill the great potentials of Malaysian nationhood.

Let all Malaysian Chinese and Malaysians ponder long and hard what were the factors which had held back Malaysia in the past five decades from being a world-class nation whether in terms of parliamentary democracy, rule of law, educational excellence, international competitiveness, efficient and incorruptible public service, low crime, quality of life – allowing other countries like Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea to overtake us and presently in peril of being left behind by others like Thailand, Vietnam and even Indonesia. Continue reading “CNY message – “Mother” of all ang pows to nation and future generations”

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Bible confiscation – rise of LMNs in Abdullah’s Islam Hadhari

“Fu: seized Bible copies returned to owner” was the headline in yesterday’s Star – on copies of the Bible taken from a woman at the Low Cost Carrier Terminal recently which were promptly returned to her within 24 hours of the matter being highlighted in electronic media like Malaysiakini and foreign agencies and press like the International Herald Tribune and the protest of the Council of Churches Malaysia (CCM).

The question every Malaysian is asking is – why is the government so super-efficient and super-responsive only when the general election is around the corner but such traits are totally forgotten after polling day?

It is just no good enough for Fu to say that the confiscation of 32 Bibles from a woman who had just returned from a visit to Manila was done by a Customs officer and did not involve his Ministry. Continue reading “Bible confiscation – rise of LMNs in Abdullah’s Islam Hadhari”

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Kedah School- Sports selection on Thaipusam Day

Letters
by A Parent

I hope you can publish this in your blog. The publication can be an effective deterrent for future. Your blog has helped lots of cases in this way.

I am parent of Form 1 student of Sek Men Taman Hi-Tech in Kulim.

I attended the school Sports Day yesterday (Feb. 4) and I am just shocked at what I saw.

The Malaysian government started the National Service Program, with the objective of racial integration, my foot. That 3-month stint is just a show to make money when the situation in schools are totally different.

This is what I saw yesterday. Continue reading “Kedah School- Sports selection on Thaipusam Day”

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Najib apology on demolition of Hindu temple on Deepavali eve – six more apologies by Umno/MIC leaders awaited

The front-page headline of the night edition of China Press is “Najib apology – demolition of Hindu temple on Deepavali eve”.

This is a manifestation of Makkal Sakti (People’s Power) but it is a grave error for the Barisan Nasional and MIC leadership to think that such an apology is acceptable or satisfactory answer to the Malaysian Indian political awakening and uprising following the seminal 30,000-people Hindraf protest in Kuala Lumpur on Nov. 25 last year.

If Najib and the top Umno leadership are serious in wanting to making amends for the long-standing political, economic, educational, social, cultural religious polarization of the Malaysian Indians resulting in their becoming the new underclass in the country, Najib’s apology must be followed by at least six other apologies and ensuing actions, such as:

• Apology by Selangor Mentri Besar, Datuk Seri Khir Toyo as the No. 1 man in the Selangor state government who must bear full responsibility for the demolition of the Hindu temple in Shah Alam on Deepavali eve;

• Apology by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi for Umno insensitivity in holding the Umno General Assembly last year on the day of Deepavali – when it would be regarded as highly insensitive and offensive if MIC, MCA or Gerakan had held their national delegates meeting on Hari Raya Aidilfitri for instance.

• Apology by the Umno Youth deputy chief, Khairy Jamaluddin, the Prime Minister’s son-in-law in publicly castigating the Indian news vendors for “anti-national” actions in having a press holiday when the Umno general assembly was being held resulting in the policy speech of the Prime Minister and Umno President at the Umno general assembly not given coverage the next day – when it was the fault of Umno in fixing its general assembly on Deepevali, long a press holiday.

• Apology by MIC President and sole Indian Cabinet Minister for over 28 years in refusing to admit the fact of the marginalization of the Malaysian Indians – a stand which he reiterated during his recent visit to India;

• Apology by Abdullah for the detention of the five Hindraf leaders under the Internal Security Act for fighting the cause to end the marginalization of the Malaysian Indians – and the five should be released immediately and unconditionally.

• Apology by Samy Vellu for the 20-year-long Maika Telekom Shares hijacking scandal in betraying the rights and interests of Malaysian Indians who had put their trust in him by placing their life-savings in Maika shares.

Are these six apologies from the UMNO and MIC leaders forthcoming to demonstrate that there is now a genuine change of heart in the top Umno leadership to meaningfully end the marginalization of the Malaysian Indians in the country?

(Speech at the DAP ceramah in Buntong, (Ipoh Barat) on Sunday, 3rd February 2008 at 10 pm)

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Although case lost in Seremban High Court – let 74-yr-old Gan Eng Gor be the last “body-snatching” in Malaysia!

The Cabinet meeting tomorrow must resolve that 74-year-old Gan Eng Gor will be the last “body-snatching” case in Malaysia as it is a standing rebuttal of Malaysia’s boast as a world example of inter-racial co-operation and harmony.

The Cabinet should also decide that the police should not be involved in any “body-snatching” case as public confidence in the police will be adversely affected, on top of the divisive effects of such “body-snatching” incidents on Malaysian nation-building.

The Cabinet decision tomorrow is all the more imperative as the Gor family has lost all avenues of redress in the civil courts, as their application to the Seremban High Court for a declaration that Gor was not a Muslim was dismissed this morning in chambers on the ground that the High Court has no jurisdiction in the matter, as it belonged to the Syariah Court.

This is sad day for Malaysian nation-building and the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s oft-repeated boasts in international conferences of Malaysia as a model of inter-faith co-operation.

I am sure that the founding fathers of this nation, when agreeing to the Merdeka social contract in 1957, would never have imagined that 50 years after nationhood, Malaysia would have regressed to the extent that “body-snatching” has become a nightmare to bedevil inter-racial and inter-religious relations.

I have no doubt that Tunku Abdul Rahman, Tun Razak, Tun Tan Cheng Lock, Tun Tan Siew Sin and Tun Sambanthan would have found it completely unthinkable that the nation could be plagued by a problem like “body-snatching” – with the police aiding and abetting the “body-snatchers”.

Enough is enough, and I call on the Cabinet tomorrow to send out a clear and unmistakable message that “body-snatching” is completely detrimental to the process of nation-building in multi-racial, multi-lingual, multi-cultural and multi-religious Malaysia and the worst possible advertisement of the nation as “Truly Asia” and a model of inter-faith understanding. The police must be directed that they should never be a party to such disgraceful “body-snatchings” in the country. Continue reading “Although case lost in Seremban High Court – let 74-yr-old Gan Eng Gor be the last “body-snatching” in Malaysia!”

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End “body-snatching” – Cabinet cannot continue to shirk its responsibility

Why are the MCA, Gerakan, MIC and other non-Muslim Ministers silent on another body-snatching case after the divisive Moorthy case two years ago where S. kaliammal, the widow of Everest mountaineer L/Kpl M. Moorthy, found only grief and injustice when she had no remedy in any court in the dispute as to whether her husband was a Hindu or a Muslim?

At the time, Malaysians were given the assurance that the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and his Barisan Nasional cabinet ministers would ensure that Malaysian inter-racial and inter-religious unity and harmony as well as Malaysia’s international reputation as a model of multi-religious nation would not again be marred by more body-snatching incidents.

However, the body-snatching incidents have not stopped, with the latest case involving the police seizing the body of Gan Eng Gor, who died a week ago aged 74, after his eldest son – himself a Muslim convert – said he had converted to Islam last year. This claim had been challenged by Gan’s wife and his seven other children.

(Speech at the DAP Kepayang dinner in Ipoh Barat on Sunday, 27th January 2008 at 10 pm)

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Malaysia First Family and new grandson Jibreil Ali Jamaluddin

by Dr Chen Man Hin

The first family is truly representative of a multiracial Malaysia which has Malay, Chinese, Indian and Indigenous communities.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has ancestors hailing from the MidEast of Arabic origin

His daughter , Nori Abdullah was born of a Japanese mother. His son-in-law Khairy Jamaluddin comes from a Malay ancestry. The new grandson, Jibreil Ali Jamaluddin, can be said to have ancestors hailing from Malaysia, Arabia and Japan. The blood coursing through his veins is a mixture of Malay, Arabic and Han ancestors. He is typical of the young Malaysian, who because of mixed marriages among the different races, is/ multiracial /a rooted Malaysian

From the genetic point of view, the true Malaysian is a Bangsa Malaysia.

Other terms like bumiputras or ketuanan Melayu has no genetic basis, but are the creation of misleading politicians.

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Hishammuddin sets worst example for sensitivities in plural Malaysia?

I have received and put on my blog another complaint by a parent against a school principal – of SMK Bandar Utama 4 Damansara – about the lack of understanding and respect for the sensitivities and rights of diverse races, religions, languages and cultures in plural Malaysia which are the real assets of the country.

It is most shocking that the never before in the 50-year history of Malaysia have there been more “Little Napoleons” who have become school principals and administrators who lack the most elementary understanding and respect for the rights and sensitivities of diverse races, religions, languages and cultures of plural Malaysia. Continue reading “Hishammuddin sets worst example for sensitivities in plural Malaysia?”

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Songkok as compulsory uniform for prefects – JB English College backs down

At 20:56,19 hours yesterday, on my thread “Songkok compulsory wear for JB English College prefects”, a blog visitor left the following posting:

However, as far as the “EC prefect wearing songkok issue” is concerned, I am surprised that no one has yet posted that the issue has been resolved amicably as the headmaster himself has announced today during an emergency prefects meeting that it is NOT compulsory for the prefects to wear the songkok for whatever function or duty.

This morning, I phoned and spoke to the principal of Maktab Sultan Abu Bakar (formerly English College) Johor Bahru, Haji Zulkifli bin Mahmood and he confirmed the veracity of the posting on my blog – that he had announced that it is not compulsory for school prefects to wear the songkok for whatever function or duty.

I welcome the return to sanity, as the compulsory imposition of the songkok issue has attracted considerable flak and traffic on my blog with three threads and 359 comments in four days, viz: Continue reading “Songkok as compulsory uniform for prefects – JB English College backs down”

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Suspend “Little Napoleon” school principals who trample on rights and sensitivities of plural Malaysia

The Cabinet next Wednesday should order the immediate suspension of school principals who acted as “Little Napoleons” in unilaterally and arbitrarily imposing rules and regulations which trample on cultural and religious rights and sensitivities in a plural society – demonstrating that they lack the most fundamental qualification to be school principals.

The latest manifestation of such “Little Napoleons” is Maktab Sultan Abu Bakar (formerly English College) in Johor Bahru in making “songkok” part of the compulsory uniform of school prefects in the school.

I put up on my blog the protest letter of a parent of a school prefect in Maktab Sultan Abu Bakar who said his son, who is in Form Five, would resign as a school prefect – appointed since Form II because of his exemplary conduct – if he is forced to wear the songkok. There are over 160 responses in the two threads in my blog on this issue in the past 24 hours, showing the intensity of the sensitivities over the matter.

Recently there have been an unchecked increase of incidents whether in schools, universities or involving the government decision-making process showing growing indifference, disrespect and even contempt for the sensitivities and rights of the diverse races, cultures and religions in the country – which are most detrimental to the goals of nation-building and the Vision 2020 objective of creating a Bangsa Malaysia.

Yesterday, Malaysians learn to their shock another incident of the “Little Napoleons” running wild in Malaysia – the confiscation of English language Christian children’s books said to contain offensive caricatures of prophets from several bookshops in Johore Baru, Senawang (Negri Sembilan) and Ipoh by state enforcement officials of the Publications and Al-Quran Texts Control Department under the Internal Security Ministry. Continue reading “Suspend “Little Napoleon” school principals who trample on rights and sensitivities of plural Malaysia”

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Songkok made compulsory – latest in series of insensitivities usurping “middle ground”

I have today received a complaint from a parent of a prefect in Maktab Sultan Abu Bakar (formerly English College) in Johor Bahru expressing the strongest objection to any attempt to make “songkok” part of the compulsory uniform of school prefects and students in the school.

He said his son, who is in Form Five, has been a school prefect in Maktab Sultan Abu Bakar since he was in Form Two and had always been an exemplary student, as well has won praise from many teachers for his exemplary conduct and commitment to his duties and studies. He is also a member of the ExCo of the Prefectorial Board.
The parent wrote:

“Recently, in the beginning of this year, there was an instruction from the school, which I believe came from the teacher advisor to the Prefectorial Board, that Prefects have to start wearing the Songkok as part of the official uniform. At first, the instruction was that it would only be required during ‘official functions’ like school assemblies and during interschool events or major events like sports day and speech day. However, this has now been revised to include daily prefectorial duties.

“There are reasons to believe that the practice of getting Prefects to wear the Songkok, is a prelude to getting ALL the students of the school to eventually follow suit.

“My son, after conferring with me, has decided that he will NOT wear the Songkok. He is willing to resign from the Prefectorial Board if forced to wear the Songkok.”

The parent expresses grave regret at the utter lack of sensitivity of the school authorities on this issue, stating in considerable detail his objections – as “the songkok is an emblem of the Malay identity” and “non-Malays should not be forced to don attire which does not reflect their identity”.

I put up the parent’s letter on my blog and in a matter of less than eight hours there had been over 80 responses – demonstrating the strong feelings evoked by another addition to a catalogue of insensitivities recently shown by those in power or in authority in government to the legitimate rights and sensitivities of diverse races, religions and cultures in a plural society – aggravating racial and religious polarization instead of forging greater unity and understanding among the different races, religions and cultures in the country. Continue reading “Songkok made compulsory – latest in series of insensitivities usurping “middle ground””

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Students, question authority!

by Dr. Azly Rahman

(Below is Part 2 of the speech on “student idealism” delivered at the annual gathering of the Malaysian and Indonesian Muslim Students in Washington DC, USA, December 2007.)

Most respected Malaysian and Indonesian students of the Islamic faith, let us continue. I begin with two quotes:

“Everything is good in the hands of the author of Things, everything degenerates in the hands of Man,” said Jean Jacques Rousseau, the spiritual force of the French Revolution.

“Know thyself know thy enemies, one hundred battles one hundred victories,” said the legendary Chinese military leader Sun Tzi.

If there is a thesis statement or a guiding idea or an inquiry theme in my speech today, it is this: question authority, break new frontiers of thinking, but listen to the voice of the inner self in order to serve humanity.

We live in interesting times, as chairman Mao Zedong once said; interesting because the forces of globalisation is at perpetual war with humanity’s inner sense of beingness.

We are a republic onto itself. We are a kingdom we govern ourselves. In each and every one of us lies an inner world bigger than the world outside – a world if known, if and only if we know ourselves – is a world in which freedom reigns and one in which the self refuses to be caged and shackled by structures of oppression built by others.

The essence of being human is that of having the insatiable urge to question and to search for answers, and next, not satisfied with the answers, to continue to question. Some revolutionary [thinkers call this dialectics; the permanent revolution in our world of cognition. Becoming a human being is a process – we are as a French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre would say, beings in the process of becoming and by doing so we define the world and able to “name” it. We have always lived a life in which our world is already pre-determined, our belief system prepackaged, and our knowledge of the political world prepared for us as propaganda produced and disseminated by those who owns the means of producing propaganda. We have live in what a British writer Eric Blair/George Orwell called a world of “doublespeak” wherein what it said has its form and appearance. Continue reading “Students, question authority!”

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Songkok compulsory wear for JB English College prefects?

Letters
by a JB EC parent

I have a query for you about the English College, Johor Bahru, which is now also known as Maktab Sultan Abu Bakar.

My son who is in Form Five this year, has been a Prefect in EC
since he was in Form Two. He has always been an exemplary student, as well has won praise from many teachers for his exemplary conduct and commitment to his duties and studies. He is also a member of the ExCo of the Prefectorial Board.

Recently, in the beginning of this year, there was an instruction from the school, which I believe came from the teacher advisor to the Prefectorial Board, that Prefects have to start wearing the Songkok as part of the official uniform. At first, the instruction was that it would only be required during “official functions” like school assemblies and during interschool events or major events like sports day and speech day. Hoever, this has now been revised to include daily prefectorial duties.

There are reasons to believe that the practice of getting Prefects to wear the Songkok, is a prelude to getting ALL the students of the school to eventually follow suit. Continue reading “Songkok compulsory wear for JB English College prefects?”

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Mazu statue – Lim questions Yong’s stand

Daily News Express
Lim questions Yong’s stand
Sunday 06 January 2008

Kota Kinabalu: Parliamentary Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang has accused Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) President Datuk Yong Teck Lee of leading the attack on former Chief Minister Tan Sri Chong Kah Kiat to oppose the Mazu project in Kudat.

He said Yong – also a former Chief Minister – and Chong should be standing united to hold the middle ground to uphold the constitutional right of Sabahans and Malaysians on the freedom of religion by continuing with the construction of the 32.9 metres (108-feet Mazu) statue.

“It is disgraceful and tragic that instead of the two former Sabah Chief Ministers standing on an united platform working for the completion of the world’s tallest Mazu statue, Yong is leading an attack on Chong to oppose the project,” Lim said in a Press statement released in Parliament Saturday.

Lim, who is DAP Member of Parliament for Ipoh Timur, quoted several reports pertaining to the Mazu project by the two former Chief Ministers in the Daily Express. Continue reading “Mazu statue – Lim questions Yong’s stand”