The Rohingyas in Selayang

In the 70s when the boat people from Vietnam arrived on our shores, they were quickly huddled together into a camp in Sungei Besi pending re-settlement in another country by the UNHR.

I have personally visited the camp and I found the people were well behaved (except for one small riot) and the settlement was self-contained with its own sundry shops, barber salons, eateries, etc. Some of the refugees are now well to do Americans, professionally as well as in business.

The multi million ringgit question is, why didn't our government make such an arrangement for the Rohingyas when they arrived here as refugees instead of allowing them to roam free building a hornet's nest like the one in Selayang.

I have just received an audio recording with the voice of a foreigner speaking in BM, telling all that Selayang is their domain and that the Malays have better butt out.

Selayang used to be a typical Malaysian locality where Chinese, Malays and Indians live harmoniously together either as residents or doing businesses. Why has it come to this?

And the person responsible for bringing this people in, why have they left these immigrants on the lurch?

Jennifer Soars writes ....

We are all in the same storm : But as I learnt in the last few days, we are not in the same boat!!

A few weeks ago I wrote the first part, entitled “We Are All in this together.” In that post, I talked about taking responsibility for the posts we write. And how we must not allow ourselves to be a conduit for racial and religious bigotry. I was meant to write this second part within that week. I was thinking of making an excuse as to why I’ve been tardy, but the truth is, it is, what it is. However, I believe that actually, perhaps it’s timely that I am writing this now. A friend showed me today, why my title had to change. And maybe that’s why I had to wait.

We may just be coming out of MCO, and while part of me is feeling the adrenaline rush of anticipation that we are on the mend, I can’t help my feeling of trepidation and no, it’s not excitement. It is an unadulterated fear. My fear stems from a knowledge that as a people, Malaysians are generally not an extremely responsible lot.

Here are some reasons for this observation:

There will be immediately, on an announcement of a lifting of the MCO, an exodus of homeward bound people, with no Moses to lead them into a promised land. Instead it will be thousands of Covid zombies, many who won’t even know they are carriers, wandering around and straight into a wasteland . And until and unless all highways, back roads, and dirt tracks are manned by the police and army personnel and closed, prior to relaxing the MCO, this exodus is going to become a nightmare. In fact, this clamp down should have already started. Because, I believe, with Ramadan, just a couple of days away, some will be sneaking home already.

I know how everyone feels, though. I have so much compassion for my Muslim friends this Ramadan. It was tough on Christians going through Lent without the services at Church. It was challenging not to be able to spend Holy Week with family and abstinence during Lent took on a whole new meaning. It’s going to be harder on fasting Muslims. But I believe it will also be the most rewarding experience. If you will allow it.

However, if we are brutally honest about who we really are, as Malaysians, there will still be buka puasa clandestine gatherings and birthday and other celebrations occurring in little pockets without social distancing being in place. We have already seen how the law can be flouted....it already has been, even before the MCO has been lifted. And the culprits are those who should know better. ‘Kepimpinan melalui teladan, is just a buzz expression. Some of those now governing us believe that the restrictions of the MCO are not meant for them. They have flouted the MCO and the police are nonplussed or intimidated or just plain helpless in the wake of their arrogance. Who do we, the man in the street, look up to for guidance when they are showing such poor leadership?

At a time, when we should be tightening our belts and worrying how to feed our hard core poor, and making sure we do not have another cluster of new patients popping up, our politicians are putting our country on the world map for all the wrong reasons.

One minister, instead of focusing on women and children and domestic abuse, sacked a gentleman, who was doing a great job in her ministry, and then created instant infamy by suggesting that women tart themselves up while working from home , dress up as if they were at the office , and talk sweetly in a Doremon voice to appease their men at home. Even Trevor Noah, stopped insulting Trump for a tad to give her special mention. Or Lordy, save us from the acquiescent and submissive wife.

Then there is Dr Noraini calling for Datuk Seri Dr Zahid to be included in MY’s cabinet line-up. Why? And the PAS president dictating that only Muslims Bumiputras should govern Sarawak.

Thats not all. There’s that two- step, hustle, or line dance which I believe used to be Dr Mahathir’s forte, that caused the Heineken and Carlesberg debacle. Again, why? At a time like this to be calling for a ban on all liquor licenses and shooting themselves in the foot when the country needs the revenue so acutely, borders on the ridiculous, no actually, it borders on the sublimely stupid.

And while we do know that we have to appease that PAS chappie, do we really need a Special Envoy to the Middle East, and now China? What has happened to our Ambassadors? Have they become persona non grata overnight?

However, I believe that the perhaps the worst thing that has happened, has been the de facto law minister, announcing that all ministers of the PN government, will be made heads of GLC’s, which are supposed to be business enterties and not political parties.

So, I must admit, I’m afraid for this country. Not only have we to be afraid of Covid 19 still getting the better of us, where on earth are we heading to, politically? So, while we can no longer use the expression, ‘let your vote be counted’, what are we going to do? Willy nilly we have had a new government forced upon us. The sanction for this Government came from the top. We, the hapless voters are going to have to sit on the sidelines while we cool our heels. And our opposition is beginning to look dubious, if there is even one at all.

Usually it is during a war that we get to separate the wheat from the chaff. Like the proverbial chaff, we have seen a lot of them blowing in the wind, as some of our ministers try to make themselves heard, warm water health minister and 500 countries deputy minister spring to mind. As much as they have failed us, the good news is that we have found a saviour in our Director General of Health, Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah. He has been our rock, calming us and keeping his daily reports brief, honest and clear. And had the exodus home, at the beginning of MCO, not happened, we might have been out of the woods by now. Or not.

Anyway, it’s now time to decide what’s next for us.

What happens when we get out of Covid jail? Parliament will have to sit. They cannot hold off from a sitting, any longer.

Are we going to allow this government to continue?

Have they done right by us?

What do we want?

Are we pushing for elections? Or have you all forgotten that we once went to the polls and fought for change? And won, and that we can do this together, again.

Or have you decided to accept the way things are, the status quo?

Has a fear of the Corona Virus, numbed our minds?

A few weeks ago, someone asked me what has happened to MAJU. They are still here. MAJU is still committed to becoming the third wave. Their manifesto has not changed. Neither have their strategies. As soon as this MCO is lifted, they will continue their road shows. But there can be no real change until MAJU has the numbers, and we are a force to reckon with. We need to be ready. We have been waiting around for 36 days.

Have you guys found the people you want to lead you? Some good people have come to the forefront.

Have you guys stopped enrolling people to join MAJU?

If you have, why? We can only effect change if we have the numbers.

We will come through this. We are already winning the battle against the Virus.

Now we have to continue the fight for our country. And what that means is that we need to gather our wits about us. Our economy has taken a bashing. For many businesses, things will never be the same. Some may never recover. Some of us may have to start over. At least let’s come back fighting. It’s time.

Written by

Carol Jennifer Soars.

22.4.2020

The opinions expressed in this post are my own.

Is the Bumiputera policy good for Malaysia?

It’s not good for Malaysia, and will ultimately lead to violence and misery. I think some background is required before getting into the actual policy.

When Malaya was colonized by Great Britain, the colonizers set in motion a dangerous course for a multicultural society like Malaysia is today. By bringing immigrants from India and China to do the majority of the work they needed and mostly leaving Malays to continue living as fisherman or simple servants, they educated and lifted up Chinese and Indian immigrants while allowing Malays to fall or remain behind.

When it came time to give up their colony and create the Malayan Union, the British realized the problem they had created with probably huge disparities of wealth, education, and influence among the races. This is probably primarily what led to so much tension and even the infamous race riot of 1969.

So it’s not surprising that the solution proposed by Malaysian government officials was to give Bumiputera special subsidies and advantages over other races with the New Economic Policy. As I understand it, this was intended to last for 20 years. That might have been an okay idea on paper, but in practice it was doomed to fail. To paraphrase a wise man: The closest thing on earth to eternal life is a government program.

So it never ended, but was only revised in 1991 (and maybe even made worse).

The most pernicious thing about the current Bumiputera policy is that while it hurts everyone, the people it hurts the most are the people it is designed to help the most. It is the epitome of “the soft bigotry of low expectations”. The subconscious message delivered to those being “helped” by a program which provides certain advantages based on a person’s race is “Your race is inferior to these other races and there’s nothing you can do about it but rely on the benevolence of government assistance.” Have a conversation with enough Bumis in Malaysia and they will eventually reveal this deep-seated insecurity.

(You can see a similar effect among Native Americans in the US, who receive more “help” in real dollars than any other race in America, and have many of the same problems as Bumis do today).

Of course, things have not gotten better for the Bumiputera. While the data to back up that claim is sorely missing (deliberately so, I believe), it’s fairly obvious to anyone willing to make some simple observations. Take a look at a list of the wealthiest Malaysians and notice how few Bumiputera there are. The diabetes (and obesity) rate among Malaysians over 30 years old is something over 21%, and you can pretty much guarantee that number is higher among Bumiputera. Despite huge advantages in education, Bumiputera still lag behind their non-Bumi peers.

The Bumiputera policy has also led to unofficial discrimination which has resulted in Malaysia’s civil service being dominated by Bumiputera. That includes a police and military force which doesn’t come close to resembling the mixed racial makeup of the country.

The Bumiputera policy also has the effect of making non-Bumis feel like second class citizens who, almost anyone would admit, could never become Prime Minister in their own country. Because of that sentiment, a massive brain drain of bright young Malaysians fleeing government-enforced stagnation of their own success is under way as they look for opportunities in other countries where they will be rewarded for their own merit.

[Source : Quora - Dan Jones]

WHERE IS YOUR UNITED STAND ON MALAY ISSUES, WHERE IS YOUR WILL TO CHART NEW NARRATIVES FOR A RACIALLY UNITED NEW MALAYSIA: MILITARY VETERANS GIVE PAKATAN A WELL-DESERVED SCOLDING

KUALA LUMPUR— The National Patriots Association (Patriot) criticised Pakatan Harapan (PH) components and politicians today for being directionless and contradicting each other during recent communal controversies.

Its president, Brig Gen (Rtd) Datuk Mohamad Arshad Raji, noted that some groups were becoming radical in their demands for Malay rights, such as the mass rally to oppose the government’s plan to ratify the United Nation International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD).

“PH could have spoken in unison on the decisions taken by the Cabinet.

“Either a narrative on how our nation should move forward is unclear, or each tried to be individual heroes instead of providing the leadership that our society very much needed of them,” he said in a statement today.

Another example cited by Mohamad Arshad was the Seafield temple riot that started off as a land dispute, before it was turned into a racial issue to demand the resignations of Indian ministers.

“Hate speeches have become overly fiery and often devoid of rationale.

“These are works of sponsored thuggish behaviour and hooliganism intent on creating chaos that will benefit those who have been and will be indicted for their crimes against the nation,” he said.

However, he commended Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s recent call for the Malays to change their value system in order to succeed.

“Positive values are the very foundation of success for any community, groups and the nation as a whole,” he said.

He said therefore the government must devise a long-term strategy to steer the nation forward and solve the many problems inherited from the previous regime.

“Our nation is moving into a new year with a rising global interest rate, a weak stock market, a contracting world economy and a trade war between of the world’s two superpowers.

“Within our country, a weakening ringgit, a shrinking job market and a declining oil price threaten a situation that is both inflationary and an indication of stagnating growth,” he said, adding that Malaysia also has a RM1 trillion debt to manage.

Despite the bleak outlook for 2019, Mohamad Arshad urged Malaysians to close ranks in order to face the imminent hardship.

“If we stay united, the hardship will be shared and its impact lessened. Patriot urges all Malaysians to think globally and stay united, and together we shall weather the storm ahead,” he said.

[Source : MALAY MAIL]

The morning after, hypothetically that is.

Just thinking aloud. On the morning after GE14, the results declared that BN only achieved a 30% popular votes but yet proceeded to form the government. I dread to think how the rakyat will receive such a news. With 30%, or even 40% of the popular votes obtained by BN, can they still say they are the "Government of the people, by the people, for the people" when the majority of the people don't want them?

Chance meeting ....... hmmmm

A chance meeting between Johor DAP chief Liew Chin Tong and former MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek has ignited speculation for one Chinese newspaper.

According to Oriental Daily today, which published a photograph depicting the duo at the meet, had insinuated that there were “secret discussions”.

“These are two influential politicians on opposing sides. What were they secretly discussing?” read the report.

Although the photograph was supposed to have been taken on March 9, the Oriental Daily report was published one day after Liew’s candidacy for Ayer Hitam was announced.

The incumbent Ayer Hitam MP is MCA deputy president Wee Ka Siong. It is widely known that Chua and Wee have been on and off rivals in MCA since 2008.

They are both influential MCA leaders in Johor.

When contacted, an irate Chua stressed that it was a chance meeting in Kluang and there was nothing political about it. Liew is the current Kluang MP.

“We were both attending different functions. What’s wrong with political friends exchanging pleasantries?” asked Chua.

When contacted, Liew confirmed it was a chance meeting but refused to comment further.

[Source: Malaysiakini]

Battling for the hearts and minds of the Chinese Johoreans.

A FEW days ago, DAP lawmaker Yeo Bee Yin bid a tearful farewell to her supporters in Damansara Utama when she confirmed that she would be moving from Selangor to contest in her homestate of Johor.

The Chinese vernacular media has indicated that Yeo may be fielded in the Bakri parliamentary seat which is considered a safe one for DAP.

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Yeo’s father was reported to have said that the iron tree in their Segamat home had bloomed during Chinese New Year and he saw it as a good omen because the last time it happened, Yeo was about to head off to Cambridge University.

DAP has begun shuffling its cards to move more of their heavyweights into Johor to give a boost to the party’s quest to make further inroads into the state.

There has been so much hype about Johor being Pakatan Harapan’s frontline state in the general election.

But the real battleground is in the seats where Chinese voters could determine which way the seats go.

There are some 30 such parliamentary and state seats and the stage is set for another face-off between DAP and MCA, the two parties battling for the Chinese hearts and minds in the country.

Actually, DAP has won almost all the Chinese seats in Johor. The 2013 Chinese tsunami delivered a total of 13 state seats and four parliamentary seats to the party.

But politics is about power and the party knows that to cement their place at the top of the Chinese mountain, it needs to take down state MCA strongman Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong in Ayer Hitam.

The contest shaping up between the MCA deputy president and Johor DAP chairman Liew Chin Tong has already captured public imagination. The outcome of that contest could shape Chinese politics in Johor in the coming years.

Ayer Hitam, a nondescript town where agriculture is still the mainstay occupation, will be some sort of bellwether seat.

If it falls, then it means that the Chinese tsunami is still rolling on and MCA’s future will be cloudy in Johor and elsewhere.

But if Dr Wee manages to hold back the DAP challenge, then it could mean the start of a comeback for his party which has had a horrible time since 2008.

The political chatter in DAP is that Liew, currently Kluang MP, may also contest the Bekok state seat which is adjacent to Ayer Hitam. Bekok is a Chinese-majority state seat within the Labis parliamentary seat which MCA vice-president Datuk Chua Tee Yong won by only 353 votes.

Kulai MP and lawyer Teo Nie Ching is scheduled to contest in Yong Peng, one of the two state seats in Ayer Hitam, to provide back-up for Liew.

The party is also said to be toying with the idea of fielding Teo in Labis to take on Chua.

In other words, she will hold up the state seat in Ayer Hitam for Liew while Liew will hold up the Bekok state seat for her in Labis.

They will be the Bonnie and Clyde couple in DAP’s bid to dominate the Chinese battleground. The strategy sounds brilliant except that the mood in the small towns of Johor today is quite different from that in 2013.

There are rumblings on the Chinese ground and the feedback from Chinese press reporters is that not all Chinese voters in Johor want to change the state government.

This may result in split voting among the Chinese – state to Barisan Nasional, parliament to Pakatan. A segment of them are not convinced that Pakatan is a worthy replacement for Barisan. They are probably waiting for the candidate line-up and also who Pakatan will put up as their Mentri Besar.

They are also not impressed with the service record of some of the Pakatan lawmakers. They can now compare the service they used to get to what they are getting now.

The mood is not like before. When DAP tried to hold a kopitiam event featuring Lim Kit Siang in Chaah, a small town surrounded by thriving new villages in Labis, the coffeeshop owner agreed but told them: “No speeches.”

Some of the local folk have openly told Chua that they will support him this time.

Chua’s DAP rivals used to ridicule him, saying he has to work hard because of his narrow win. Chua is an intelligent and diligent politician and he had searched his soul to try to understand the 2013 election outcome.

“You can ask my voters, I am there for them on issues of education, welfare, temples. I am not just a festival YB. Even if you win by five votes, you have got to serve the electorate, you are still the MP,” said the Australia-trained accountant.

The first big show of force between the two sides will take place tomorrow. DAP is bringing in its top guns nationwide to celebrate the party’s 52nd anniversary in Yong Peng.

MCA will launch its Team Johor machinery in Johor Jaya, a state seat that MCA intends to take back from DAP.

The rivalry between DAP and MCA is as old as the history of electoral politics in Malaysia but it has taken on an extra-urgent tone in battleground Johor.

– ANN