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| Malaysian politicians say the darndest things |
| Features | |||
| Written by Amir Muhammad | |||
| Tuesday, 20 January 2009 17:02 | |||
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‘You can curse me and say what you like about me personally but I don’t care if people were to call me an old car or an old lorry or and old bicycle, so long as you don’t call me an old Quran.’ Wanita UMNO leader Rafidah Aziz railing against people who think she has outlived her usefulness. She is being challenged by her deputy Shahrizat Abdul Jalil to head the movement, a move she characterises as a shocking betrayal. Except for a brief spell in 1996-8 when she was replaced by Siti Zaharah Sulaiman (thought to be an Anwar Ibrahim proxy), Rafidah has headed the women’s wing since 1984. (The Star, 23 November 2008).
Rafidah Aziz reacting to a report in Indian newspaper DNA, which had quoted young poet Sharanya Manivannan, a former resident of Malaysia, as claiming that ‘apartheid’ was being practised here against ethnic Indians. Manivannan then said that the article had unduly sensationalised her words, and published the full interview transcript on her blog. (The Star, 5 December, 2007). ‘What do we care? Obviously, this person doesn’t know Malaysia. He is an outsider and he can say what he likes. I don’t really care about what others say – as long as it is not a Malaysian saying it.’ Rafidah Aziz referring to a column by Australian journalist Michael Backman, which had criticised Malaysia’s handling of political and economic issues. ‘The Government was more interested in stunts like sending an astronaut into space when the country’s inadequate schools could have done with the cash,’ he had written. ‘That’s not Malaysia Boleh, that’s Malaysia Bodoh.’ (The Star, 19 November 2006). ‘We want notable public sector personalities like the MP for Putrajaya (Tengku Adnan Mansor). He is a big tauke and sits over there (gesturing at Tengku Adnan). He doesn’t know about the problems of squatters and the like.’ Tajuddin Abdul Rahman (BN – Pasir Salak) making an unprovoked reference to someone else on his own team, while asking a Deputy Minister to clarify the composition of private-sector members of the Economic Council. (Malay Mail, 21 November 2008). ‘If they use force, people will complain about human rights. If (the police) don’t use force, they will keep racing.’Deputy Home Minister Chor Chee Heung, effectively admitting that the authorities were powerless to deal with the menace of mat rempit (illegal bike racers). But no one had actually ever complained about human rights when it came to the police apprehending speed-loving criminals, just when it came to unwanted force in breaking up demonstrations. (Parliament Hansard, 3 December 2008). ‘Football is only one kind of sport. And in this sport we have sometimes succeeded and sometimes failed.’ Deputy Youth and Sports Minister Yee Jeck Seng, while saying that the alarm over the low standards of Malaysian sports, especially football, is exaggerated. Two backbenchers then helped to clarify whether Malaysia was ranked 160th or 170th in the world. His reply did not please anyone from either the Opposition or the government. He ended his speech by saying: ‘I have only been Deputy Minister for seven months.’ (Malay Mail, 24 October 2008). ‘Speaker, he said a dirty word! The deputy minister must take it back!’ N Gobalakrishnan (PKR - Padang Serai) referring to Deputy Higher Education Minister Idris Haron, who had barked a Tamil word to him that he most likely meant as ‘Ukkarengeh’ (Sit down). When asked by the Speaker what the ‘rude word’ was, Gobalakrishnan took the unprecedented step of going up to him to whisper the definition in his ear. This breach of protocol caused an uproar. He apologised although he later told the media: ‘I’m very sure the speaker was happy that I told him that (meaning of the word).’ Just in case you are curious, the word sounds very similar to ‘Go **** yourself.’ (Malaysiakini, 28 May 2008) ‘They were not sacked. They were asked to retire early. It’s like optional.’ Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Nazri Aziz, referring to the six ex-judges including Salleh Abas who were involved in the judicial crisis of 1988. The case was in the limelight again due to proposals to give out ex-gratia payments as compensation to the men. (The Sun, 6 November 2008) A week later, he admitted that they had indeed been sacked, and that he did not have the full facts with him during his first answer. ‘Malaysia is rich in geology. We have to protect the geology that is our national treasure.’ N Gobalakrishnan. When a backbencher asked if he meant to say ‘natural resources’ instead of ‘geology’, he replied: ‘Geology is everything. I got it from Wikipedia.’ (Parliament Hansard, 25 June 2008). ‘I have just returned from Sarawak. And because of corruption … there is still no road to my kampung.’ N Gobalakrishnan. Others found this puzzling because he is from Perak and his constituency is in Kedah. Exasperated at the incessant heckling that he was receiving elsewhere in his speech, he challenged Islamil Mohd Said (BN - Kuala Krau) to ‘stand up if you are a jantan.’ When the latter stood up, Gobalakrishnan dismissed him with, ‘Ah no, he’s a betina.’ (Malay Mail, 17 December 2008).
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‘Oh my goodness gracious. Can you imagine? This is really telling lies. … The article really hurts… I was shocked. Obviously there is already an international network set up.’