Friday, April 20, 2012

Chinese Malaysian highest achievements?

It was said that there was a time when Chinese Malaysians numbered almost 50% of Malaysia’s population. Following illegal (but) instituted influx of Indons and Suluks, coupled with low birthrates and migration, today they numbered less than 30%.

No doubt they're good at business, but as citizens of this nation, what have been the highest official offices they had attained thus far?

In the cabinet the real/meaningful posts are of course firstly the Prime Minister - and forget about DPM because in the general case, the most senior and important minister gets the appointment – in the Australian Coalition the leader of the other party in the Coalition is automatically the DPM though they don’t use this title frequently – the Finance Minister (or Treasurer), Home Affairs, Defence, Foreign Affairs, and only in Malaysia, Education.

Tan Siew Sin was Finance Minister and a highly valued colleague of both Tunku and Tun Razak.

Well, we know no Chinese or Indian will be PM for at least another 25 years or even more, and quite frankly the Chinese don’t give two hoots, though recently I read several Indian NGOs demanded that at least the CM of Malacca should be an Indian wakakaka.

Why did I just wakakaka? Do you know who’s the current and likely still to be the next CM?

Wakakaka again and please read my October 2007 post The total humiliation of PPP - a lesson for BN parties, where I wrote: Alas, for Kayveas and most of all for his PPP members, it was hardly surprising that they were resoundingly, abjectly and severely humiliated to no ends at their Malacca annual general assembly on Monday by an UMNO vice president.

Malaysiakini reported that their guest of honour, yes, the PPP’s guest of honour, Ali Rustam, the Malacca Chief Minister who was invited to officially open the assembly, sneeringly told the PPP to get out of Barisan Nasional now if the party wishes.

He spat out while gesturing at the PPP totally gobsmacked delegates: “PPP can leave BN. All of you can leave. Either today or tomorrow. Why wait until the general election? What’s there to wait for?”

Needless to say, Ali Rustam’s ‘shock & awe’ sneaky attack on a BN component party has left Kayveas and his members totally humiliated (I need to say this word 'humiliated' again), enraged and probably in tears – in tears because as I had blogged last year, Ali Rustam had said what kaytee had predicted, though to be frank, I didn’t expect such a cruel publicly executed UMNO low kick to a helpless PPP’s groin.

And those idiots are clamouring for an Indian to deprive vicious Ali Rustam from his CM seat wakakaka.

So, other than Finance Minister, had or has any Chinese from MCA or Gerakan or one of those numerous mosquito parties in BN ever become minister of Home Affairs, Defence, Foreign Affairs or Education?

I wonder what will be the chances of a Chinese Malaysian ever becoming a minister of one of these ministries including Finance, or even Chief of the Armed Forces, Army, Navy, Air Force or IGP Police when Pakatan sits in Putrajaya as the new ruling coalition? Wakakaka.

Maybe we should go lower in status.

What about CM other than CM of Penang? Well there was somebody (can’t remember his name wakakaka) who was temporarily CM of Sabah in a bullsh*t rotating/shared CM position of Sabah which ends up with an UMNO man seemingly in permanent appointment, so we may disregard that bullsh*t.

So it’s only the CM of Penang which Chinese Malaysians may expect to be appointed … and if BN wins Penang State next (when the sun rises in the West wakakaka) we may expect that too to go to an UMNO man, probably one who (as Sakmongkol AK47 termed them) sells rancid curry wakakaka.

But does anyone know that once … yes, once upon a time long long ago … there was actually a Chinese Yang DiPertua Negeri or Governor of … wakakaka, of all places … Malacca.

From 1957 (on Independence) until 1963, Tun Leong Yew Koh was the first and only Chinese Malaysian Governor (Yang DiPertua) of a State in Malaysia.

Of course he was a MCA larng, and though born in Malaya, probably had strong connections to the Kuomintang Party of China (now Taiwan). Leong was a very close matey of Tunku, both being law students in UK. When Tunku formed his pre-Independence cabinet he selected Leong to be his Health & Social Welfare Minister, and subsequently recommended his appointment as Governor of Malacca.

We read that Leong spurned a British knighthood offered to him before Merdeka, saying: "I will only kowtow to the sovereign King of an Independent Malaya, not a foreign Queen."

Today very few Malaysians know who was Leong Yew Koh, and I suspect they include the many MCA members.

Though I asserted that not many Malaysian Chinese gives a f* about Chinese being appointed to high government position unless those appointees and/or ministers can help them (the Chinese community) in commerce and education, I have to say many Chinese Penangites have always bemoaned the fact no Chinese has been appointed as the Yang DiPertua Negeri of Penang.

One has to ask, why not?

Does it have to take only an UMNO man like Tunku to do so?

Obviously we must have a Yang DiPertua Negeri of impeccable standing. We don’t want someone with scandals like CSL wakakaka, Samy Vellu wakakaka, Anwar Ibrahim wakakaka or Hishamuddin wakakaka. And God forbid clowns like Ibrahim Ali, Hasan Ali or Apdal or even cop-biting Tian Chua wakakaka.


I personally don't mind even a non-Penangite like the legendary Lee Lam Thye but alas many Pakatan people hate him (for mindless reasons a la 'either you're with us or against us'), especially those mindless moronic Myrmidons who were still sucking rubber or plastic teats when Lee Lam Thye was already labouring away breaking his back and his old trusty (non-electronic) typewriter performing unsurpassed (even until today) sterling service for the Kuala Lumpureans, without biting cops or merely mouthing manmanlai, wakakaka.

Candidates for such Heads of States’ posts would be usually exemplary senior (retired) public servants, former diplomats or military leaders with a distinguished career, outstanding citizens, etc, or even former senior politicians (hopefully without any ‘controversies’ attached to their CV wakakaka).

Some 25 years, when Mahathir became PM, there was a fantastic candidate for the Penang YDP post, but alas, with Mahathir in control (with his BIG chip on his shoulder) that would be an unrealistic expectation not unlike what the Chinese would say ‘sai goo barng gueh’ (a rhino dreaming of the moon, or badak rindu bulan).

7 years ago I wrote of and alluded to this in my post Canada's Enlightening Example, pointing out to Canada and Australia’s excellent examples.

Even earlier, I also posted in my other blog, BolehTalkNon-Malay Yang Di-Pertua Negeri for Penang & Malacca?

I had then written:

I trust under the Abdullah Bawai Islam Hadhari government, we may soon see a more equitable sharing of the position of Penang Head of State among the various ethnic groups. But I don’t want to see a BN party ‘extra’ being booted up into this post just to keep him or her out of the political arena.

The candidate must be Penang-born for the Penang gubernatorial appointment and of course Malacca-born for the Malacca equivalent. Preferably we should have a non-political person. However, a former political life, if distinguished, should not be an automatic barrier for selection. There must not be any discrimination on the basis of gender, age, ethnicity, religion, former political affiliation, profession (except for illegal ones), background (poor or rich), as long as the candidate has a distinguished career.

Who would be the likely future candidates for both Penang and Malacca? 

I can straightway think of one distinguished Penangite – read here to know who. Admittedly the person is rather advanced in years, but as I have said, we shouldn’t discriminate on the basis of age – instead we should cherish the person’s experience, wisdom and profound knowledge of life.

[Unfortunately since 2005, that Star Online article referred to in my above link who (about PG Lim, the sister of the better known Lim Kean Siew) had been archived and I don't have privileged access. Please read  instead the Bar Council's The woman that is P.G. Lim]

Yes, even as recent as in my March 2012 post 'Half brothers' MCA & Gerakan, & sons & daughter of Penang I wrote:

Lim Kean Siew came from a distinguished Penang family of lawyers. His sister is the very distinguished Datuk Lim PG (Phaik Gan), a sweetheart who was Malaysia's Ambassador to the UN, union champion, director of the KL Regional Centre for Arbitration, feminist and, in many Penangites' opinion, should have been appointed Yang DiPertua Negeri of Penang, but alas, its too late now as she's in her 80's. Read the Bar Council brief of her here.

In a Malaysiakini article Plumbing for Bersih at book launch, to launch her memoirs (that of a legal luminary, according to MKINI), we've been informed that she’s in fact 96.


Malaysiakini reported: Pleasant surprise segued into admiration when Toh [kin Woon] listed the achievements of the Cambridge educated Lim, now 96, who broke several “glass ceilings” as one of the country’s first female political and social activists.

Toh remarked that Lim had deserted her class (meaning, social class) - she was born in London to wealthy parents (her father was from Penang and mother from British Guyana) who met while they were studying in Cambridge during the First World War - to make common cause with Malaya’s (and later Malaysia’s) working class.

Lim represented people condemned to death for sedition and espoused the cause of trade unions fighting for better wages and working conditions.

Toh’s comments were not lost on an audience aware that the fast approaching general election is being viewed as a contest between the appropriative capitalism of BN and the social democracy of Pakatan Rakyat.

But the legal doyenne whose memoirs was being lauded confined herself, in a brief video that was shown of an pre-book launch interview she had given, to terse and playful remarks on the nature of the autobiographical art and of the life she had lived.

It was a reminder that levity is an aid to longevity.

It’s a monumental loss to Penangites that we missed her leadership, probably the best Chinese Penangite candidate ever as our State’s Yang DiPertua (Dr Lim Chong Eu could have been another). Karpal Singh, when he retires, will be a marvellous Indian YDP of Penang to grace us.

I blame Mahathir for the (no doubt as I would suspect, deliberate) oversight in not recommending Ms P.G Lim, a Malaysian giant (though not an UMNO's Towering one) for the post of YDP of Penang about a quarter of a century ago.

28 comments:

  1. another ideal one a lady too born in pg NOT jelotung area & she is good mahjong addict wakakakakaka !

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  2. Two questions, KT. Can a non become Governor or YDP? Can a lady take on that post? Why do nons want that posts since it's largely ceremonial and religious and more to do with royal protocol.
    And can you name the candidates in MIC or Mca for Finance Ministry Defence and such posts?
    And its naive to expect things to change if Anwar wakaka becomes PM. He didnt even fulfil his promise of appointing Saad Man of Pas to be Head of Islamic Religious Council.
    BTW how is Lim Kean Siew? Not heard of him for a long time.

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  3. The best way for us to see a Chinaman becoming the PM of Malaysia is to have the Malaysian Chinese become Muslims en masse. The most pious and knowledgeable among them will be the best candidate to become PM of Malaysia. A pious and knowledgeable Muslim Malaysian Chinese will bring the country into an era of wealth and prosperity. The wealth of Allah is unlimited and has no boundary.

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  4. Canada, Australia, Britain, USA all have excellent examples of ethnic minority citizens being appointed or elected to very senior positions in their government or community.

    Malaysian Chinese and Indians who tend to make such comparisons need to understand one very important point though. Almost without fail, those high profile leaders are thoroughly assimilated culturally into the majority ethos of their country. To the extent their ethnic descent is largely irrelevant.

    Canada's former Governor General, Adrienne Clarkson, born in China, but is practically a White Canadian.
    Colin Powell, Chairman of the US Military's Joint Chiefs of Staff and later Secretary of State, born of Black Jamaican parents, but indistinguishable from any middle-class White American apart from his physical appearance.

    Pakistan-born British Lord, Baron Nazir Ahmed, more English than most Englishmen.(hahahaha).

    The many Malaysian Chinese who insist educating their children in their own vernacular school system, speak haltingly in Bahasa Malaysia and have hardly even basic knowledge and interest in the History and Culture of the people Nusantara can hardly complain about their lack of representation in high profile official appointments.

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  5. "Almost without fail, those high profile leaders are thoroughly assimilated culturally into the majority ethos of their country. To the extent their ethnic descent is largely irrelevant." - said Tanah Melayu.

    Tanah Melayu is obviously referring to the mamaks (indian muslims) who are now 'thoroughly assimilated', especially by marriage to the malays.

    An extract of this excellent posting by one Sheikh Moinudeen Chisti Syed Abdul Kadir might give an idea how extensive the indian dna is in the so-called malay's blood :

    (Part 1)

    In contemporary Malaysia, Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Al Bukhari, Zainuddin Mydin, Siti Nurhaliza binti 'Thaarudeen',
    Justice Haidar Mohd Noor, Ahmad Nawab, Akbar Nawab, P Ramlee, Man Bhai, Tan Sri Elyas Omar, Tan Sri Ali
    Abul Hassan are all Indian Muslims or descended from Indian Muslims.Malaysia's first Speaker of Parliament
    Tan Sri CM Yusuf was a mamak. So was the permanent Chairman of UMNO Tan Sri Sulaiman 'Ninam' Shah. 'Ninam' is actually truncated Tamil for 'Naina Mohamed'. Former Sabah Chief Minister Dato Harris Salleh and present Chief Minister Musa Aman are all mamaks. They are not Pushtuns, Pakistanis or Yemenis.

    Among our Prime Ministers Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad is the son of an Indian Muslim. Abdullah Badawi has mamak blood from his father's side. Toh Puan Sharifah Radziah Syed AlwiBarakbah, the wife of our first PM Tunku Abdul Rahman, had mamak ancestry. The Tunku himself was of mixed Thai and mamak parentage. Ex DPM Dato Sri Anwar Ibrahim's father is a mamak. The intellectuals Kassim Ahmad and Farish Noor have Indian
    Muslim fathers while the late Tan Sri Muhammad Noordin Sopiee had a mamak grandfather. Munir Majid is a Tamil speaking mamak and Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor is a mamak too.

    (continue in next comment post..)

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  6. (Part 2)

    Here it is pertinent to note the 'Syed' and 'Sheikh' name. Among Indian Muslims the name Syed or Sheikh is common, its no big deal. The names 'Shah' and 'Khan' are also very common mamak names. Other 'Malay' names like 'Chik', 'Tamby Chik' and 'Keling' are definitely of mamak origins too.
    The name 'Shah' is not common among the Malays but strangely enough it is very common among the Malay sultans, for example Sultan Azlan Shah and Raja Nazrin Shah. Shah is NOT an Arabic name. It originates from Persia and comes to Malaysia from India through the Indian Muslim influence. This is just more indication of the mamak ancestry of our Malay rulers.
    But among kampong Malays the name Syed and Sheikh are supposed to indicate Arab ancestry, the name Syed being associated with 'keturunan nabi' or lineage from the Prophet. To the kampong Malays these names are a really big deal. This is the furthest thing from the truth. Another common mamak name is 'Maricar'.
    Actually it is 'Marikiyaar'. This has evolved into 'Merican'. Hence the thousands of Malays who bear the 'Merican' name today are also of mamak ancestry. They call themselves Jawi Peranakan. They are actually mamak.
    Many smart Indian Muslims realized very early on this Malay liking for Arabic names and Arab ancestry.
    So they started passing themselves off, (or did not object if they were referred to) as Arabs, usually of Yemeni descent. In Malaysia too many Syeds and Sheikhs from among the Malays today are actually recycled
    mamaks. One good example is Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Al Bukhari. Among the Malay elite Tan Sri Syed Mukhtar Bukhari passes off as being of Yemeni descent. His family actually comes from India.The former mayor of
    KL Tan Sri Elyas Omaris also of Tamil mamak origins from Penang.
    Among the Malays it is also 'ok' if a mamak is from Pakistani descent. Perhaps Pakistan is closer to Bollywood.
    So some clever mamaks claim to be from Pakistan. The former Sabah Chief Minister Harris Salleh and present Chief Minister Musa Aman are said to be 'of Pakistan origins' but in actual fact they are of Indian mamak ancestry, and usually Tamil speaking.
    Mamaks come in all colours and complexions from the dark skinned to the light skinned, green eyed and brown eyed types. A visit to the Masjid Kapitan Keling in Pitt Street in Penang or Masjid India in Kuala Lumpur on a Friday will witness all varieties of mamak.

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  7. (Part 3)

    The Indian Muslims in Malaysia today can be classified as follows :
    Those mamaks who have inter married with Malays for generations and have actually become Malays. You can only know their mamak ancestry by their mamak sounding names like Merican, Shah, Syed, Sheikh etc, by
    their 'Indian' appearances - prominent nose, rounder eyes etc.
    Those mamaks who have not inter married with Malays but who have assimilated closely into the Malay culture.
    They can only speak Malay and have cut off almost all their links with India.These would include thousands
    of mamaks in Penang, Kedah, Melaka and other parts of the country. Only their DNA remains Indian. But practically, for all intents and purposes they are Malay.
    The rate of inter marriage between mamaks and Malays increased tremendously after 1970.After 38 years of the NEP, the mamaks are even more assimilated now through marriage than ever before.Today there is rarely a mamak
    family which does not have a Malay son or daughter in law.
    But it is a fact that the Indian Muslims are heavily intermarried with Malays.This trend started over 600 years ago and continues until today. They and their offspring have played major roles in the history of this country. Sang Nila Utama, Parameswara, Tun Ali, Hang Kasthuri, HangTuah, Mani Purindan, Tun Teja,
    Abdullah Munshi and ALL the Malay Sultans are descended from Indian Muslims.The Perlis Royal family is almost certainly of mamak/Thai mix.
    A DNA test will reveal Indian DNA among all our
    Malay rulers but which Sultan can or wants to retrace his Indian ancestry?These are the mamaks who assimilated into the Malay community from generations ago.
    Fast forward to today : in UMNO there are thousands of mamaks fighting for Malay rights. In PAS there
    are mamaks fighting for Islam (aka Malay) rights. PAS stalwart Hanipa Mydin is a pure mamak while Deputy
    MB of Kelantan Dato Husam Musa may have mamak blood. In the old Keadilan 'brother' Abdul Rahman Othman, another mamak tulen, became party secretary general and then quit later - to join PAS. In the Civil Service and in the Melayu korporat sector there are thousands of mamaks helping the NEP 'social engineering' come true.
    In Penang pure Malays are a rarity. As late as the 80s, they could only be found in Sungai Ara, Balik
    Pulau and other places where there were no roads. In all other places in Penang, mamak blood is almost
    a certainty. Hence words like 'chacha' and 'nana' are a part of Penang Malay.In Kedah and Melaka the mamak 'penetration' of the Malay populace is much more earlier than in Penang. Which means the mamaks
    in Kedah and Melaka have diluted their DNA into the Malay population from much earlier times.
    In short mamaks are a permanent feature of the Malay 'make up'. It is the karma of the mamaks that they have become kurma in Malaysia

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  8. Buttercup, if Leong Yew Koh could be governor of Malay-majority Malacca, why can't another Chinese Malaysian be Governor of Chinese-majority Penang?

    What's the difference, other than between that of an inclusive Tunku and his (exclusive to UMNO members) Ketuanan Melayu successors.

    Why can't a woman ascend to any post when it's known that a woman is already (politically) running this country? Then there was the governor of Bank Negara and Minister of NFC and Rafidah. Also look at Islamic countries like Pakistan and Bangladesh which have or had woman PMs.

    As for MCA/MIC ministers to take up positions in the inner cabinet just look at people like very low brow Muhyiddin, blundering Hisham and (derhaka to Dr M) Ahmad Zahid - fat lady Rafidah could have easily stumped anyone of them.

    Certainly the current MCA/MIC ministers are jokes but do you seriously believe Muhyiddin, Hisham and Ahmad Zaid are any better when they're equal jokes - we're of course talking about competencies to be HM ministers and not about devious cunning political nous or 'inherited rights']

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  9. It's a given that even the dumbest voter in any land fully comprehends the reality that racism simply has no place in any country that values fairness, equality and basic good governance.

    Unfortunately for Malaysians, the country has been ruled by reprobates with narrow minds and even narrower hearts in the past four decades.
    Still, it's not too late for loyal Malaysian voters to do something about it.

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  10. Dear KT

    To set the record straight I have nothing against women holding top high profile posts. Infact I admire intelligent and capable woman like Zeti and Rafidah.
    Infact I think lady PM Rosie can even be our PM. She will be tougher than hubby. Meek Wan Azizah is nothing compared to our mountain mama.

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  11. How come race and gender are such major considerations for the top posts.
    Inaddition to Pakistan, Bangladesh, other countries like India , Sri Lanka, Thailand, Indonesia, Phillipines also have ladies for the top post.

    In India at one time, the President was a Muslim and the PM a Singh.

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  12. Almost All the cases of female leaders in Asia are the outcome of political family dynasties.

    The Nehrus in India, Mujiburs in Bangladesh, the Bhuttos in Pakistan, Sukarnos in Indonesia, Aquino in Phillipines and the latest being Thaksin & sister in Thailand.

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  13. Dear KT

    On second thought I think PM Rosie needs to stay behind to promote her hubby.
    It is stupid of me comparing her to other great ladies of the world.

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  14. Tananh Melayu, nonetheless it shows that gender is not a leadership issue in Islamic nations.

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  15. Nothing to do with Islamic nations.
    Non Islamic countries have great lady PMs too.
    But in Malaysia impossible for some time.
    First thing first get rid of corruptions and race politics.

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  16. Anon 1.31pm is not me.why do people like to be me.

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  17. "First thing first get rid of corruptions and race politics" - said our Tanah Melayu.

    Hahahahaha........

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  18. Second thing get rid of Anon 6.33PM fool laughing like and idiot with no brain.

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  19. There is a little news item in the Star last year, which is a damning indictment of BN rule in Penang. Go read it before it is consigned to oblivion by our MSM masters.
    http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2011/8/5/north/9241896&sec=north

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  20. I Tanah Melayu need not read anything.
    I will vote for BN.
    I will also like to see Najib get lost and let DPM takes over.
    DAP will loose big in 13th GE and Anwar back to jail.
    PAS is lost without Tok Guru and my hero Mahathir will live to 101.
    Mark my words.
    All will come true.

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  21. Why Tanah Melayu talking that way?
    I will vote for PR but I refuse to support Anwar as our PM.
    PR will win big especially DAP and Lim Kit Siang will play me and Ktee out and support Anwar as PM.
    Our efforts not appreciated.
    WHY?

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  22. Anonymous 7:23 AM, April 21, 2012,

    Menurut Andaya (2002), Hang Tuah, Hang Jebat dan Hang Kasturi adalah pemimpin ulung kaum Orang Asli. Kekuasaan Orang Asli dalam pemerintahan Melaka serta kerajaan-kerajaan melayu yang lain mengalami kemerosotan dengan kematian ketiga-tiga tokoh ini. Pendapat ini dipetik dari Pagan Races of the Malay Peninsula, Macmillan, London 1906 karangan Skeat, W.William and C.O. Blagden.

    Andaya juga memetik pendapat Juli Edo, seorang ahli antropologi dari etnik Semai yang mengatakan bahawa Hang Tuah dan Hang Jebat adalah Orang Asli. Hang Tuah ialah Orang Jakun (Winstedt, 1935).

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  23. Dengan Islam, orang Cina di Malaysia boleh menjadi mulia sebagaimana orang Arab yang hidup secara nomad menjadi mulia

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  24. Anon 9.38pm aka Ball

    Dont use my name to pit me against Tanah Melayu. You are a first-class batu api. I share the same opinion with Tanah Melayu. Fight your own battle, Ball and dont use other people's name. Your cowardice is showing.

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  25. not only governor of penang or melaka, it can even be the prime minister & not to mention other important ministerial portfolios, for as long as he or she upholds universal values. race, religion, color, gender & what have you are non-issue. btw, why malaysian chinese & not chinese malaysian? in usa there are african american, japanese american & what what what american.

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  26. Chinese Malaysian's highest achievements ?

    Monopoly of Pirated DVD distribution.

    Monopoly of the Illegal Betting Industry.

    Overwhelming dominance of the Illegal Money Lending industry (otherwise known as Ah Longs)

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  27. I heard that old cowardice going to participate at the BERSIH 3 rally.
    May he faint and hospitalized.

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  28. I think Buttercup is drunk.

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