Attack on Dr M’s ancestry belittles Indian Malaysians

YOURSAY | ‘Why is it unacceptable to have Indian ancestry while it is all right to have Indonesian ancestry?’

Zahid takes aim at Dr M's alleged Indian ancestry

Odin Tajué: DPM Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, I detest former PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad intensely for reasons I will keep to myself.

Despite that, I don’t countenance such an attack on him. I would countenance volleys of lethal oral barbs couched and well-hidden in a language employed by men of good breeding so that they sound as harmless, or soothing even, as verses and stanzas flowing from the quills of men and women well-polished and highly schooled.

But, of course, such a language is totally alien to you. You have no class whatsoever.

Tholu: So, we have Umno members and its leaders - past and present - fooled by an Indian masquerading as a Malay bumiputera since he joined Umno more than half a century or so ago.

Zahid, to his horror, was informed by the ‘ketua pengarah’ (director-general) of Jabatan Pendaftaran Negara (National Registration Department) that Mahathir is after all of Indian heritage.

Zahid is livid that Mahathir is not of Indonesian ancestry as this would have made Zahid, Najib and scores of other Umno members proud of their forefathers who were born and bred in Indonesia, instead of India.

My humble conclusion of Zahid’s ostensible shock at the ‘sudden’ realisation of Mahathir’s origin is that if they were such morons to not know that Mahathir is of Indian lineage, how in the hell are we to trust these foreign descendants themselves to rule this country and bring progress and prosperity to the people, just as the Chinese descendants brought to Singapore?

Politician: When Mahathir was Umno president, all these people were worshipping him. Now that he has left the party for the rot it has become, they belittle him.

Mahathir may have Indian blood in him but he did nothing for Indians. Instead, he did everything for the Malays, including our ungrateful DPM, who has benefited much during Mahathir days till today.

Anonymous 2456321485312809: Zahid’s speech shows exactly what Umno is today. It is a racist organisation that does not hold moral or ethical values as its core guiding principles.

For 22 years when Mahathir led Umno, no one, least of all Zahid, raised any objection on Mahathir's ethnic background. Everyone at the top in Umno got fat during that time.

If the Malays were exploited by Mahathir during that time, then surely the other leaders in Umno, including Zahid, were equally guilty.

If being "less Malay" somehow makes a person unworthy in the eyes of Umno (which is stupid), then why does it only apply now, when Mahathir is no longer with Umno? This is hypocrisy of the highest order.

Léon Moch: Why is this even an issue? Is he trying to belittle Indians? Mahathir's mother is Kedahan Malay and he has largely lived life as a Malay.

Article 60 of the Federal Constitution defines someone like Mahathir as a Malay. If Zahid does not like it, perhaps he can try to amend the constitution.

But before he does that, he would do well to remember that many of Umno's current top guns are several times more Indian than Mahathir. You can see them on YouTube speaking fluent Tamil, indicating they have been brought up speaking the language in an Indian household.

At the end of the day, anyone of any colour, race, gender, belief, etc, should become leader solely based on merits.

Negarawan: The belittling of non-Malays and their contributions clearly shows that Umno has no respect for the non-Malay communities in Malaysia. MIC and MCA are merely political eunuchs, fully subservient to the racist agendas of Umno.

Zahid has shown himself to be a low-class politician with his ungentlemanly behaviour. Besides that, it is of grave concern that Umno is abusing its power in manipulating government agencies such as the NRD and the Registrar of Societies (ROS) for its dirty and unprincipled agenda.

Cheong Sai Fah: Why is it unacceptable to have Indian ancestry to be a Malay while it is all right to have Indonesian ancestry? Aren't both foreign and not indigenous to Malaya or Malaysia?

Anonymous_4020: Yes, it is a case of an Indonesian migrant son calling an Indian migrant son a ‘pendatang’ (foreigner). The losers are the real bumiputeras.

Since everything has come out, let us analyse this - we have a former prime minister who is an Indian, a prime minister who is an Indonesian Bugis and a deputy prime minister who is an Indonesia Javanese.

Hang Babeuf: A Malay with some Indonesian background tries to smear a Malay with some Indian background. By claiming, absurdly, or implicitly asserting his own purity. Don't make me laugh! Or cry! Or vomit! This Malay purity "jag" is nonsense.

For starters, look at the nation's PMs. Tunku Abdul Rahman was part Thai and Chinese, Abdul Razak Hussein had Bugis, Arab and Chinese ancestors. Hussein Onn had Turkish ancestors plus others too from the Caucasus region, I believe.

Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had Arab and Chinese Muslim ancestors. As for Najib, see Abdul Razak above.

The myth of Malay purity is a myth, and a dangerous myth. And total nonsense. If DPM Zahid doesn't get it, he should just be smart enough to stay silent.

CQ Muar: Zahid, what were you before you lay foot on Malaysian soil? Were you not an immigrant too, albeit not of Indian decent?

But then, what's the difference? I'll tell you the difference: a/l Iskandar Kutty was a former PM of 22 years standing with outstanding achievements, much more brilliant than you, and could deliver an English speech flawlessly, whereas you're just an upgraded deputy PM after the original deputy Muhyiddin Yassin's sacking.

Last but not least, Zahid, your "Manglish" is atrocious, simply embarrassing and unbearable.

Clever Voter: Zahid had hoped for political mileage by reminding the audience the family roots of Mahathir. This is a no brainer as everyone knows that. It will be counter-productive.

Given his obvious motive, it does tell the nervousness of BN. Weeks of insults have not been productive. Expect them to even open files of opposition leaders.

Zahid cannot reverse what Umno and his boss have done. But he could confess and reverse the decline overnight.

Anonymous 759201436321741: The pot calling the kettle black. Zahid, are you the pot or the kettle? Or both? - Mkini