Demi Wangsa?

Malaysiakini’s Anwar says again: No qualms with Lim as DPM reported: Anwar Ibrahim has stood by his earlier statement that a non-Malay, such as DAP advisor Lim Kit Siang, can be appointed the deputy prime minister if Pakatan Rakyat wins the next general election.

He said: "I want to ask: Why do we deny any citizen who has the ability and capability, including Lim, just because he is a Chinese? I cannot accept that.”

Anwar was responding to UMNO’s racist taunts that he was pro Chinese and marginalising PAS.

That Malaysian politics have come to a stage when the opposition leader has to defend the prospect of a Chinese being the DPM is truly sad, and an indictment on UMNO racism.

Once upon a time, so it was said, Tan Siew Sin, then Finance Minister, wanted to be DPM. But Razak denied him that, despite Tan being almost Malay. He was a peranakan but unlike Ridhuan Tee, carried himself as a Chinese Malaysian. Perhaps that worked against him.

However, Razak instructed the Armed Forces to accord Tan military compliments, meaning he was to be saluted. At that time, protocol required the military to salute only 3 civilians, namely, the PM, DPM and Defence Minister. So adding Tan Siew Sin to the list was a singular honour. But my Uncs, two of whom were officers, told me they (all officers), just to be on the safe side, saluted every minister, including Samy Vellu wakakaka.

In the meantime, our non-uniformed Wonder, Defence Minister Zahid, de Patriot extraordinaire, stated: I didn't mean to hurt non-bumi feelings, explaining his remarks in Parliament last month when he claimed the reason for low non-Malay numbers in the Armed Forces was Chinese and Indians were 'not patriotic enough'.

It’s race again. Of course the real reason is also racial, that it’s 'very difficult' for a non to get into the military, and when he/she does, to have a reasonably prospective career.

Not to be outdone, HRH the Sultan of Perak, probably the most educated royalty and one who had reached the highest judicial appointment in the land, stated at the launching of the state-level Ma'al Hijrah celebration at the Kolej Islam Darul Ridzuan hall that Malays who question special rights are traitors.

I won’t comment on the words of HRH, a most learned man. I leave that to Haris Ibrahim who posted his response in Ampun Tuanku, patek pohon derhaka.

The most succinct sentence in Haris' post has to be: I am saddened because the words attributed to my monarch suggest that His Royal Highness might have overlooked that he is monarch to all in his state, and not merely the Malays.

Like Haris, I am saddened by this continuous harping on race.