Perhaps Tajuddin Abdul Rahman (BN-Pasir Salak) should attempt a stand-up at the Crackhouse Comedy Club as he seems to think that he is good at cracking jokes. But I’m not sure anyone will be laughing. I know I won’t.
The trouble with Tajuddin is that he is unaware that some of his so-called jokes are not funny at all. Instead, they hurt the feelings of others. Or he is just good at pretending his crude words were made in jest when it was a deliberate affront at another person.
We have witnessed via the videos of Tajuddin’s antics in Parliament how he probably thought that he was joking when he opened his mouth to snipe at others. What happened later? He was left to laugh alone at his own “jokes”.
Even outside Parliament, his behaviour is the same. Remember the “two trains kiss kiss” insensitive remark from him during his press conference after the LRT collision in Kuala Lumpur.
Tajuddin probably thought he was freaking hilarious but we all know he was freaking dumb. Scores of commuters were badly injured and he thought it was still okay to be funny. For that gaffe, Tajuddin was punished with his immediate removal as the Prasarana chairperson. And rightly so!
I do not know the Pasir Salak MP personally but I do find him to be a very queer character, yet very powerful politically, perhaps undeservedly.
Not worth it
Many of us will remember one classmate in school who stood out, either as the naughtiest, smartest, or laziest. Tajuddin was that classmate. In Umno today, he probably stands out as the party’s most well-known recalcitrant.
Tajuddin is someone everyone loves to hate or hates to love, but none really feel like challenging him even if they know that he is way out of line. To his party colleagues, they know it’s just not worth it to pick a fight with Tajuddin unless one is prepared to descend to his level.
All of Malaysia is probably buoyed by the passage of the Anti-Hopping Bill in Parliament on July 28. It was quite straight forward and the overwhelmingly support from 209 MPs was expected.
However, two days earlier on July 26, the debate on the Anti-Sexual Harassment Bill took on another twist, as was expected. Not surprisingly, Tajuddin was at the centre of the commotion during the debate.
That day, Kasthuri Patto (Pakatan Harapan-Batu Kawan) was ejected from the Dewan Rakyat after she refused to accept a ruling regarding Tajuddin’s alleged sexist remarks.
Dewan Rakyat deputy speaker Rashid Hasnon had addressed the letter Kasthuri sent this week demanding swift action against Tajuddin for his allegedly sexist behaviour.
The deputy speaker ruled that the Malay curse word, p*****k, allegedly uttered by the Pasir Salak MP was not in the Hansard - which elicited an objection from Kasthuri and caused her to be removed from the House.
Tajuddin, who was given two minutes to speak on the issue in the House, deemed the claim a “political assassination”.
“I strongly object and deny the accusation from Batu Kawan and her conspirators who are working together to bring down my image,” he said.
Don’t be full of yourself
Allow me to address the two points brought up by Tajuddin – (1) political assassination and (2) bring down his image.
Firstly, let’s take the word “assassination” to mean “the murder of a prominent or important person”. Tajuddin should not put himself so high on a pedestal – he is no president or prime minister.
An MP is just an ordinary fellow, in case Tajuddin thinks he is super high and mighty. If Tajuddin were to take a walk in Bukit Bintang, no one would know who he is. So, please don’t be so full of yourself!
Assuming a person of his level is murdered in a public space, the crime reporter would not use the term “assassination” to describe his misfortune. “Man shot in broad daylight” is likely to be the heading for the story in print the next day.
No, Tajuddin, you will never be “politically assassinated”. John F Kennedy, Mahatma Gandhi, Benazir Bhutto and most recently, Shinzo Abe, were “politically assassinated”. They were respected world leaders. You are not even fit to tie their shoe laces, Tajuddin.
You, Tajuddin, are just an indecent, uncouth, foul-mouthed politician from Malaysia whom nobody wants to know. So, nobody is going to assassinate you. Many other MPs heard you uttering the expletive “p*****k”; only you pretended you didn’t say it and chose to lie through your teeth.
I know my take on “political assassination” is not as funny as I intend it to be. I’m not sorry if you, Tajuddin, are not amused. That’s okay. Like you, I can always laugh alone at my own “joke”.
On Batu Kawan and her conspirators working together to bring down Tajuddin’s image, I don’t think Kasthuri and her colleagues are interested to have anything to do with the Pasir Salak MP in the first place.
Not wanted by Indonesia
For the record, I have not heard of any incident where the female DAP parliamentarians had said anything to Tajuddin to cause a ruckus. It was always Tajuddin who started throwing punches first.
I take great exception to this one: “The only woman with a ‘Kok’ is in Seputeh.” This was uttered in 2016 when Tajuddin was a deputy minister. What behaviour is this, and from a deputy minister?
Let me address Tajuddin personally on this: Tajuddin of Pasir Salak, Teresa Kok of Seputeh could be my mother, sister, wife, or daughter. Even if she isn’t related to me by blood, Teresa and I are Catholics and we called each other “brother and sister in Christ”.
In the same fashion, Kasthuri, Teo Nie Ching, Hannah Yeoh, Yeo Bee Yin (whom you claimed are Kasthuri’s conspirators) and all the honourable women MPs are my “sisters” and in their defence, I want to send this message to you, man to man:
Tajuddin of Pasir Salak, between us, being rough and crude and everything, even the worst swear words and dirtiest expletives in the dictionary, is fair game. Try throwing them at me. My email is in the blurb below. I will respond accordingly.
In the meantime, I’m glad your appointment as ambassador to Indonesia was rescinded. On July 28, I overheard someone uttering in Parliament, “Even Indonesia tak mau you”.
If you don’t know why, Tajuddin, I am honestly in the dark as to what are you still doing in Parliament today. - Mkini
FRANCIS PAUL SIAH is a veteran Sarawak editor and heads the Movement for Change, Sarawak (MoCS). He can be reached at sirsiah@gmail.com.
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.
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