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  • Flashback 1988: Definition of Malay Was Debated In Parliament (In The Context Of GRC System)

    Flashback 1988: Definition of Malay Was Debated In Parliament (In The Context Of GRC System)

    The issue on the definition of Malay was debated earlier in Parliament (in the context of the GRC system) back in 1988.

    It was an exchange involving Goh Chok Tong, Chiam See Tong and Ahmad Mattar.

     

    Part of the excerpt read;

    Can a Maori be a “Malay” Member of Parliament? Will the day come when five Europeans enter the Singapore Parliament as “Malay” MPs?

    Opposition MP Chiam See Tong posed these questions to his Select Committee colleagues as he questioned the revised definition of a Malay in the Team MP legislation.

    First Deputy Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong’s reply: Anyone who feels he is part of the Malay community and is accepted by the community as such can be a “Malay” MP.

    “If indeed five Europeans are accepted by members of the Malay community to be members of the community, they will be so put up by the community as candidates, because they are regarded as members of that community,” he said.

    The same goes for even a Maori, said Mr Goh.

     

    In another part;

    If the day came when five or seven such Europeans entered Parliament as “Malay” MPs, he asked, where was the minority representation the GRCs were meant to ensure?

    Dr Mattar told him that Malay candidates must first be cleared by the Malay Community Committee.

    “If the Malay community thinks that it is best represented by the Europeans, so be it. I do not think it will happen,” he said.

    Mr Sidek said that while the revised definition embraced other races, the real objectives was to avoid complaints from groups like the Banjaris or Achenese, who were not included in the original definition.

     

    Also;

    Mr Goh pointed out that the purpose of the GRCs was to ensure Malay representation in Parliament and the definition was crafted to include anyone who believes he is part of the community and is accepted as such by it.

    He said that if Europeans are accepted as members of the Malay community, they are free to stand as “Malay” candidates.

    “If the Malay community is happy, who are we to say they should not represent them? Because they are regarded by the Malay community as members of the Malay community.”

     

    Source: Abdul Rohim Sarip

  • PAP Put Spotlight On Race When They Reserved This Presidential Election For Malays

    PAP Put Spotlight On Race When They Reserved This Presidential Election For Malays

    Don’t talk about their Malay-ness, discuss their capabilities instead. This is generally what many PAP supporters are saying. They remind us not to focus on the race.

    Excuse me! In the first place, who made this election about race?

    Malay Singaporeans didn’t ask for this election to be reserved for the community. We were capable of looking beyond race to vote someone capable and independent like Dr Tan Cheng Bock as President if he had been allowed to contest an open PE.

    The Malay community didn’t say we are not going to participate in any Presidential elections because no Malays were contesting.

    It was the PAP who made this election about race. So, naturally, we will discuss how Malay those aspiring Presidents are. If the person is not adequately Malay to the community, then having that candidate as our President does not make us proud and will continue to perpetuate the perception that the community is being excluded from the presidency.

    Don’t make our community the scapegoat.

     

    Rilek1Corner

  • Who Is Most Malay Among Three Aspiring Presidential Candidates?

    Who Is Most Malay Among Three Aspiring Presidential Candidates?

    Aspiring Presidential candidate,  Mr Salleh Marican wants to donate his salary to charity if elected while Mr Farid Khan says he will focus on countering the threat of radicalism by working closely with the Government and the various groups to build trust among people of different races and religions.

    Despite their noble intentions, netters gave the perception that all Singapore care about is if they are Malay enough, to qualify as the second Malay President of Singapore.

    Being Malay has nothing to do with your IC. That is just the government’s (and previously Colonial) lazy way of categorising its citizens for its administrative purposes.

    Being Malay is an identity, it is cultural, it is language, and it the community.

    The latest tweak in the Constitution was made to preserve the multiracial nature of the institution, because  ‘studies’ showed that Singaporeans tend to vote along their racial identity and thus needed to be nudged to practice what they preach – a multiracial community.

    Why do you even bother asking if the person is Malay enough? 

    The essence of the minority rule is, to ensure that the official races in Singapore i.e. Chinese, Malay, Indian, Others all have an equal chance of qualifying to be the President of Singapore.

    So what if MENDAKI has a rigid definition of your race? We have enough anecdotal evidence to show that it’s silly  – Why then do you want to follow their silly definition?

    Aspiring candidates for the presidential election have to see the office, not as a job but a calling and the President has to ultimately unite Singaporeans, beyond just the Malay community.

    Asking an individual from the community if he/she is Malay enough question is harmful and are generally asked by people who have more to gain by distracting and fragmenting the Malay community further.

    It achieves nothing.

    Salleh Marican, Farid Khan and even Halimah Yacob (if she runs) IS Malay enough to me

    They speak the language, they dress the part, they celebrate Hari Raya, even the people that they interact with on daily basis even thinks they are Malay.

    Ethnic identity is a “matter of socialisation”. “It has nothing to do with skin colour or other so-called racial features.

    What we should be asking is, what are their credentials?, Are they saying things just to play to the gallery, is their heart in the right place?

    Have they consistently stood by and work for the community all their years or are they just doing this now because they want to be considered for the Presidency.

    Do they represent meritocracy, equality and progress, values and ethos which Singaporeans hold dearly?

    Can they unite Singaporeans, young and old? Can they uphold the highest level of integrity required and inspire others to do the same?

    We are still months away from September and there would probably be more candidates coming forward.

    The next time someone tries to engage you on the PE by asking if the potential candidates are Malay enough, ask them if they know what being Malay means in the first place.

    The beauty and strength of the Malay race has always been its unity in diversity with regard to customs, practices and everyday living. The kinship ties between the various communities in different countries, particularly in the Southeast Asian region known as the Nusantara, is what defines Malay as a collective ethnic group

    F***  Mendaki and their shallow and rigid definition of what is Malay.

     

    Source: www.thoughtssg.com

  • Hanifa Kahar, Orang Bukan Cina Pertama Jadi Presiden Kelab Pidato Mandarin

    Hanifa Kahar, Orang Bukan Cina Pertama Jadi Presiden Kelab Pidato Mandarin

    Buat pertama kalinya seorang anak Melayu/Islam dilantik sebagai Presiden bagi Kelab Pidato (Toastmaster) Mandarin, Dewan Perniagaan dan Perusahaan Cina Singapura (SCCCI).

    Walaupun bukan berbangsa Cina, Cik Hanifa Kahar, 52 tahun, diberi kepercayaan untuk menerajui kelab pidato tersebut oleh lembaga SCCCI, sekaligus mencipta sejarah.

    Cik Hanifa memberitahu BERITAMediacorp beliau mula menyertai kelab pidato Mandarin itu sebagai anggotanya dan menyampaikan pidato pertama dalam bahasa Mandarin pada tahun 2015. Beliau juga pernah dilantik menyandang jawatan sebagai Naib Presiden Keanggotaan Kelab.

    SESINGKAT 2 TAHUN SAHAJA JADI ANGGOTA, KEMUDIAN DILANTIK JADI PRESIDEN

    Ini bermakna beliau dilantik sebagai presiden kelab tersebut dalam tempoh hampir dua tahun. Ternyata, kecekapan dan kewibawaan Cik Hanifa meyakinkan pihak lembaga SCCCI untuk memilihnya.

    “Semasa saya menjadi Naib Presiden Keanggotaan, Presiden dan dua lagi Naib Presiden Pendidikan ketika itu berasal dari China. Jadi, semua urusan baik menerusi panggilan telefon mahupun Whatsapp perlu menggunakan bahasa Mandarin, jika tidak saya tidak dapat menjalankan tugasan saya,” kongsi Cik Hanifa.

    “Oleh itu, saya belajar bahasa Mandarin di kelab pidato itu, jalankan tugasan, tulis teks pidato dan dapatkan bantuan mereka untuk menyuntingnya. Proses-proses tersebut secara tidak langsung membentuk diri saya yang sekarang. Apabila tiba masa untuk melantik seorang Presiden baru, agak jelas, saya menjadi pilihan mereka,” cerita Cik Hanifa kepada BERITAMediacorp.

    Menurut Cik Hanifa, peranan beliau sebagai presiden kelab pidato tersebut adalah untuk menaikkan profil kelab dan memancing minat orang ramai supaya datang ke mesyuarat-mesyuarat mereka untuk lebih memahami tentang kelab itu dan juga SCCCI sendiri.

    Meskipun Kelab Pidato Mandarin SCCI adalah kelab yang “inklusif”, Cik Hanifa berkata setakat ini anggotanya terdiri daripada masyarakat Cina dan seorang rakyat Jepun.

    SIAPA HANIFA KAHAR?

    Cik Hanifa adalah pengasas laman Childhoodspeech – di mana beliau berkongsi pengalamannya mendidik anak beliau menjadi seorang yang boleh bertutur melebihi satu bahasa dan berharap ia dapat memberikan inspirasi kepada para ibu bapa lain.

    Selain itu, Cik Hanifa juga sering memberikan ceramah-ceramah motivasi dan perjalanan hidupnya membuatkan rakan-rakan serta masyarakat lebih menghargai keindahan bahasa apabila ia berjaya dikuasai.

    Beliau juga merupakan penulis buku bertajuk ‘Parenting Inspired! Follow The Path Where The Child Loves To Grow’, di mana beliau bercerita tentang pengalaman sendiri yang mendapat inspirasi daripada anak tunggalnya, sehingga beliau berjaya membangunkan Childhoodspeech pada tahun 2008.

    “Saya mahu memahami lebih lanjut bagaimana saya sendiri bermula bertutur dalam beberapa bahasa sejak kecil lagi dan bagaimana saya boleh mendidik anak perempuan saya. Saya mahu beliau juga belajar bahasa Mandarin. Oleh itu saya berkongsi di laman tersebut,” ujar ibu kepada seorang anak remaja berusia 16 tahun ini.

    IBU BAPA JAWA-PALEMBANG, TAPI GALAK ANAK BELAJAR MANDARIN

    Bahasa Mandarin sebenarnya bukanlah bahasa yang begitu asing dan baru dipelajari Cik Hanifa.

    Menurut Cik Hanifa, ibu bapanya yang berketurunan Jawa-Palembang memastikan beliau, abang serta kakaknya mempelajari bahasa Mandarin meskipun mereka sendiri tidak boleh bertutur dalam bahasa itu.

    “Semasa kecil, saya sudahpun mempelajari bahasa Mandarin di sekolah. Kami tinggal di Beach Road pada waktu itu dan bapa saya menghantar kami adik-beradik belajar bahasa Mandarin. Bapa saya seorang yang berpandangan jauh dan mengetahui manfaat bahasa Mandarin ke atas pendidikan dan masa depan kami,” kongsi Cik Hanifa, anak bongsu daripada tiga adik beradik – satu lelaki dan dua perempuan.

    Cik Hanifa bersama ibunya. (Gambar: Shamsuddin Kahar/Facebook)

    Cik Hanifa juga boleh bertutur dalam empat bahasa lain, termasuk 1 bahasa dialek – Melayu, Inggeris, bahasa Indonesia dan juga Hokkien.

    BERBUAL DIALEK HOKKIEN DENGAN ADIK-BERADIK

    Ini satu lagi fakta yang boleh membuat anda terpegun. Cik Hanifa dan adik-beradiknya hanya berbual dalam dialek Hokkien sejak kecil sehingga sekarang!

    Walaupun sudah biasa dengan bahasa Mandarin selama hampir 50 tahun, Cik Hanifa berkata beliau perlu terus mengamalkannya dalam sekitaran yang dapat membantu memantapkan penguasaan bahasa itu.

    Bagi Cik Hanifa, itulah cara paling baik supaya beliau dapat membantu dan mengajarkan bahasa Mandarin kepada anaknya dengan cara yang lebih berkesan.

    “Saya menyedari yang saya perlu bertutur dalam bahasa Mandarin dengan anak saya, jadi saya terus mempelajari bahasa itu supaya saya dapat mengajar beliau. Saya mahu memberi inspirasi kepada anak saya dan diri sendiri untuk mendalaminya,” Cik Hanifa memberitahu BERITAMediacorp.

    Cik Hanifa menambah: “Saya juga yakin dengan melibatkan diri dengan kelab pidato ini, saya harap saya boleh mendapat inspirasi untuk terus mempelajarinya supaya pendidikan dan asas yang sudah ada tidak sia-sia.”

     

    Source: http://berita.mediacorp.sg

  • Policeman Misused Police Database To Check On Girlfriend

    Policeman Misused Police Database To Check On Girlfriend

    A policeman has got into trouble with the Law in Singapore for misusing Police database to check on his girlfriend. Hafidz Hamzah, who have since been suspended from duties since December last year, was a sergeant at the Central Police Division, when he used his own account or a colleague’s account to conduct multiple illegal searches on his girlfriend on the police computer system.

    He was trying to check if his girlfriend had a criminal record or was involved in criminal activities. Hafidz had befriended Ms Maizurah Abdullah, then 25, in August 2015, and started a relationship with her. Between August and October that year, Hafidz accessed the Criminal Records Office (Cross) and the Frontline Officers’ Computerised System (Focus) portals in Police Cantonment Complex and using Ms Maizurah’s name, mobile number and identity card number, conducted a search for her records. Ms Maizurah did not give him her IC number. The portals, which come under the Home Affairs Ministry, can only be used for official purposes.

    He had used his own account, or that of his colleague to abuse the system He had tricked his colleague into giving his login details after Hafidz’ account was suspended pending his transfer to Rochor Neighbourhood Police Centre. In a separate case, it was also reported that Hafidz came to know a woman who was staying in a Geylang hotel in March last year, and they began a relationship. During a heated argument on Feb 27 this year, Hafidz hit her. He took her mobile phone and threatened to post her nude photos on the Internet. The prosecutor said the victim herself had sent nude photos of herself to him, and she was afraid he would carry out his threat and tarnish her reputation.

    Hafidz has been sentenced to one months and eight weeks in jail for the offences.

     

    Source: www.allsingaporestuff.com