The PM is Demeaning Himself

By Kee Thuan Chye | Malaysiakini

It looks like Prime Minister and Barisan Nasional (BN) chief Najib Razak has outdone himself at self-debasement. His appearance in the now much-talked-about Chinese New Year advertisement has not only shown his desperation to win Chinese votes in the soon-to-be-held general election; it has also elicited responses from viewers full of derision and contempt.

I showed it to someone who is non-partisan, sensible, well-educated and who exercises good judgment, and these were her reactions as she watched it:

“Hak sei ngor! (Shocking)” … “Unheard of” … “Eeyer! Geli! (Makes my skin crawl)” … “Trying too hard”.

Her remarks are uncannily similar to those that have been expressed on Facebook by many other Malaysians.

In the advertisement, as Chinese New Year preparations are under way, a little girl brings out a small drum to play. A figure suddenly appears. To instil a sense of mystery, the video shows only his legs. He asks the girl, “Do you know how to beat a drum?” Then we see the man for the first time, but only the lower part of his face. Najib’s famous pink lips and moustache are instantly recognisable!

It is at the recognition of Najib that my friend gasped, “Hak sei ngor!”

The girl gives Najib her drum. But why? We don’t know. Going by his question, wasn’t he supposed to show her how to beat a drum?

The scene changes, and the lyrical background music gives way to drum beats. We then see a close-up of a pair of hands beating a large Chinese drum with sticks. A lion’s head appears. The girl gasps. Firecrackers are set off. A lion dance is on. More drummers join in. A crowd watches the dance with awe. But after a while, their expressions change to curiosity. One or two crane their necks to get a better view of the drummers. More firecrackers explode.

Then an elderly man lets out a cry of surprise. No wonder! The drummer is revealed in full glory. It is – lo and behold! – none other than Najib! Wearing a red Chinese costume, Najib beats the drum once, twice, then flings both arms out like an eagle to signify the end of the performance with a cry of “Hah!”.

At this point, my friend exclaimed, “Eeyer! Geli!”

The smiling crowd applauds. More firecrackers explode. Next we see the girl whispering something in Najib’s ear. A smiling Najib says something back to her. This is followed by a shot of a Chinese word on a piece of red paper and then of Najib, hands clasped together, wishing everyone, “Gong Xi Fa Cai.”

My friend had a good laugh. “He’s trying too hard,” she remarked.

Paying attention to detail

On Facebook, those who know Chinese criticised the writing of the Chinese word and pointed out it should have instead been written as “吉”, with the upper horizontal line being longer than the bottom one. In the advertisement, it is rendered the other way around, which apparently connotes bad luck.

And since the word denotes an approximation of “Jib”, which Najib has come to adopt as his Chinese name (Ah Jib), it doesn’t forebode well for him.

One really wonders why his advisers did not pay attention to detail. And why they did not caution him that performing in this advertisement might bring him lower in public esteem.

To be sure, there were some Netizens who expressed appreciation for the advertisement and his role in it, but far more were full of ridicule.

“Oh, gosh! This ad actually made my mind go blank for a good five minutes … that’s before I burst into laughter. Stupidest ad ever!” wrote one. And this was among the milder ones.

On Najib’s performance, many said it was “lawak” (clownish). One called him “an absolute clown”, another called him “Maharaja lawak” (king of clowns).

A kinder critic wrote, “We do not need a PM who can play drums, we need a PM who can stop corruption.”

In almost the same vein: “Dear PM, we would like to see you spend more time managing the country rather than carry out a PR exercise like this.”

And of course, some demanded to know how much of the people’s money was spent on this “desperate act by a desperate PM”.

Also, because the advertisement endorsed the burning of firecrackers, which is actually banned in Malaysia, one Netizen summed up the sentiment surrounding this issue by commenting, “Sejak bila kaum Tiong Hua dibenarkan membakar mercun? Janji tidak ditepati!” (Since when has the Chinese community been allowed to burn firecrackers? Promise unfulfilled!)

A most telling comment was the one that echoed my friend’s: “Aiyer … geli!”

And the one that sought to predict the near future: “Hahahaha … jawatan baru lepas kalah PRU13 … Ketua Ketuk Gendang Tarian Singa!” (Hahahaha … new job after losing GE13 … Head Lion Dance Drummer!)

Najib’s public relations advisers have truly mucked up. Strategies such as putting out this advertisement to try and win votes can, in fact, have the reverse effect. They annoy people.

It’s the same with the letters, postcards, SMSes that BN has been sending out wishing people Happy Chinese New Year or Happy Birthday or greeting them during other festivals. It freaks people out that BN is privy to their private particulars, like their birthdate or their mobile phone number.

The recent Chinese New Year letter is accompanied by ang-pow packets with Najib’s face on them. What a waste of money printing them! Who is going to use ang-pow packets with his face on them? For some Chinese, it could mean bad luck!

Normally, ang-pow packets carry symbols of happiness, luck, prosperity or the image of the animal of that year. Never the face of a person. A person steeped in Chinese culture said to me, “Even Mao Zedong never had his face on a red packet!”

Obviously, Najib’s advisers are not well-versed in Chinese culture. They were also not smart in getting the Korean K-Pop sensation Psy to perform his ‘Oppa Gangnam Style’ number at the BN Open House in Penang on the second day of Chinese New Year.

Obviously, the event was meant to attract a mammoth crowd so that BN could boast that it and Najib had the support of Penangites. But as it turned out, most of the people who went for it were not there for Najib but for Psy. And once Psy’s performance was over, many left in droves. That took the thunder away from Najib.

More than that, cynical questions were raised about the astronomical cost of bringing Psy in for such a brief performance. Even though the organisers said that a private sponsor underwrote it, the gesture showed a penchant for extravagance that starkly contrasted the difficult economic times, especially for common Malaysians coping with the rising prices of essential goods.

As for winning votes, one doubts Penangites would be fooled into siding BN just because it brought Psy in to perform for them. However BN may underestimate their intelligence, Penangites are not stupid.

Sure enough, just before Psy was about to appear, Najib asked the crowd three times, “Are you ready for Psy?” and each time the crowd shouted, “Yes!” But when he followed that with the ill-advised question, “Are you ready for BN?”, the crowd replied with a resounding “No!” And he foolishly asked it three times as well, each time getting the same negative reply. Frankly, he looked stupid. So much for Malaysia’s prime minister.

One Netizen summed it up aptly on Facebook: “The irony for BN is they spent close to RM3,000,000 for a publicity stunt that backfired, and it became a people’s forum to say NO to BN.”

In his desperation to ensure victory for BN at the coming general election – and especially the two-thirds majority that he may need in order to keep his job – is Najib aware that he is losing his self-respect?

Well, the way he’s been going around begging the people to keep BN in power for another term; the lack of confidence he exhibited when he said on Jan 5 that he hoped he would still be prime minister to have the opportunity to open KLIA2 on June 28; the cash handouts he’s been throwing out to win the people’s favour; and now the Chinese New Year advertisement and Psy circus, he seems willing to do anything to attain his desperate goal. Even if it means losing his dignity.

Perhaps he thinks that if he keeps doing it, people will kesian (pity) him and give him sympathy votes. But any way you look at it, that’s really pathetic. Especially for the person who holds the nation’s highest office. What he needs to understand is that people will not respect him if he doesn’t respect himself. And without respect, he has no business being PM.

Kee Thuan Chye is the author of the bestselling book No More Bullshit, Please, We’re All Malaysians, and the latest volume, Ask for No Bullshit, Get Some More!

Penang CM Lim Guan Eng Chinese New Year Speech

Respect for Diversity, Public Integrity And Rule of Law Is Not The Problem But The Solution Towards Realising Malaysia’s Aspirations of A Peaceful and Prosperous Developed Nation.

DAP Chinese New Year Message By DAP Secretary-General Lim Guan Eng In Kuala Lumpur On 11.2.2013.

The Year of the Snake will be a challenging year as it will also be a general election year that will determine not only the course of our children’s future but also the nation’s destiny. However this gives Malaysians the rare opportunity to signal clearly that respect for diversity, public integrity and rule of law is not the problem but the solution towards realising Malaysia’s aspirations of a peaceful and prosperous developed nation.

As Malaysians embrace the K-pop culture and national leaders indulge their love for PSY, we must remember that South Korea’s success is tied to these values and solution. For this reason, Malaysians must make their choice based on which party maintains consistent principles, offer people-centric policies and is competent in delivering performance.

No longer shall Malaysians submit, but will stand up to condemn the use of racist and derogatory remarks by UMNO leaders towards minority communities. The habitual racist remarks by UMNO leaders are individually repulsive but what is most deplorable, when these attitudes are held by those in government.

DAP believes that Malaysians will reject former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s call that BN be returned with a 2/3 majority so that the Federal Constitution can be amended to strip off the citizenship of dissenting Malaysian lawyers such as Bersih co-Chair Datuk S. Ambiga. Previously UMNO MPs had asked for Datuk Ambiga to be hanged for organizing the Bersih rallies.

When the UMNO-backed Perkasa made the incendiary call to burn the Bible, Muslim and Malays stood up together with non-Muslims to condemn such irresponsible acts. Some Muslims even publicly read passages from the Bible to show their solidarity and respect for other faiths.

The challenges for the Chinese community are inextricably intertwined with those faced by all Malaysians. The problems of Chinese education whether lack of funding or non-recognition of Unified Examination Certificates, lack of equal opportunities and erosion of political rights must be resolved together with those faced by other communities. Our goals of a fairer, freer, cleaner, safer and prosperous society can not be advanced if another community suffers and injustice.

Just as we must not ignore but accept our differences, we must also not dismiss but respect our diversity. Regardless of what gods we pray, we are all created differently. It is these differences that we are one – one human race.

Similarly Malaysia achieved Merdeka with full recognition of our differences and diversity. It is the recognition and acceptance of these differences by Tunku Abdul Rahman that makes Malaysia one nation. Let us reaffirm our commitment towards a Merdeka united by common values of justice, democracy and freedom regardless of race, religion and background.

—-Mandarin Version —

民主行动党秘书长林冠英于2013年2月11日在吉隆坡发表农历新年贺词：

尊重多元、公共廉正及法治不是问题，而是让马来西亚成为和平繁荣进步国家的途径。

蛇年将是举挑战性的一年，这是大选年，不只将决定我们孩子的未来，也将决定国家的未来。但是，这也是马来西亚罕有的机会，可以清楚地显示尊重多元、公共廉正及法治不是问题，而是让马来西亚成为和平繁荣进步国家的途径。

正当马来西亚人追棒“韩流”而国家领袖也欣赏PSY，我们必须要紧记韩国会成功，正是因为上述价值观及方法。因此，马来西亚人必须基于哪一个政党坚持原则、提供以民为本的政策、有能力表现政绩而做出选择。

马来西亚人再也不会屈从，我们将会站出来谴责巫统领袖对少数社群所发表的种族性及煽动性言论。虽然巫统领袖一贯地使用种族性言论使人反感，但更可悲的是，他们也在政府内采取同样的态度。

行动党相信马来西亚人将拒绝前首相敦马哈迪医生的号召，让国阵重新掌控三分之二国会议席，以修改联邦宪法，褫夺持异见的律师的公民权，如：净选盟联合主席拿督安美嘉。之前，巫统国会议员也要求当局将拿督安美嘉问吊，因为她组织净选盟大集会。

当由巫统撑腰的主权组织煽动焚烧圣经，穆斯林及马来人一起站出来，与非穆斯林一起谴责这种不负责任的行为，一些穆斯林甚至当众朗读圣经的经文，以显示他们对其它宗教信仰的尊重及同心同德。

华社所面对的挑战也与全体马来西亚所面对的问题息息相关。华教的问题，不论是缺乏拨款或是独中统考文凭不受承认、缺乏平等机会及政治权利遭侵蚀，必须与其它社群所面对的问题一起解决。如果任何一个社群在受苦受难、面对不公义，我们所要求的更平等、更自由、更干净、更安全、更昌盛的社会将不会前进。

对于差异，我们不能忽略而是接受；对于多元，我们不能拒绝而是尊重。不论我们信奉什么神，我们天生就有差异。我们之所以身为人类，正是这些差异。

同样地，马来西亚在完全接纳我们的差异及多元后取得独立。正是东姑阿都拉曼对这种差异的认同及接纳，而让马来西亚成为一个国家。让我们再次肯定我们追求国家独立时的志愿，让各种族、各宗教及不同背景的人士，都在公正、民主及自由的共同价值观下团结起来。

林冠英

Are you ready for PSY, YES, YES, YES Are you ready for BN 'SAI' NO, NO, NO

Why must umno-bn be so desperate to play politics even during the Chinese New Year and they claim they are not when they brought in PSY to perform in Penang. The event happening proved that they lied and indeed its all about politicking and not about celebrating the Chinese New Year with Penangnites even to the extend that PSY refused to join in.

My two tweets before the day of the event:

Richard Loh ‏@MalaysiaForAll 2 Feb
A quick poll via sms to friends of both sides. 'Any advantage 4umno-bn to bring in PSY' All 10 friends say NO! 6 added that it may backfire!

Richard Loh ‏@MalaysiaForAll 6 Feb
Penangnites welcome @NajibRazak @drchuaSL with open arms 2celebrate CNY No political speeches/politicking if ur sincere 2 celebrate with us

Watch the following YouTube and see how Penangntes welcome PSY and totally rejected umno-bn Najib 'SAI":

GONG XI FA CAI - HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR

WISHING ALL MALAYSIANS

A HAPPY & PROSPEROUS CHINESE NEW YEAR

GONG XI FA CAI

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