You can make mistakes, but you aren’t a failure until you start blaming others for those mistakes.
– John Wooden, American basketball coach
Over this past week, two Members of Parliament from the opposition Perikatan Nasional (PN) must have learnt one important lesson the hard way.
That is, one should choose their adversaries with care. It is foolish to take on political heavyweights when you are just a lightweight.
I think these two lawmakers should be told that they looked rather silly and stupid when they acted like a tiger one moment and became as timid as a mouse next.
If I were one of them, I would be utterly embarrassed and might disappear from public view for a while to hide my shame.
However, as always, politicians are such thick-skinned people that they would always claim they were speaking up for the people even when they made ludicrous statements. Their so-called constituents are often the scapegoats for their foolishness and mistakes.
Mas Ermieyati Samsudin (PN-Masjid Tanah) and Wan Saiful Wan Jan (PN-Tasek Gelugor) were the two MPs caught in a war of words with Tourism, Arts, and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing.
Of the two MPs, Mas Ermieyati is more senior and in her third term as a parliamentarian while Wan Saiful only made his electoral debut exactly a year ago.
They are political lightweights when compared to Tiong, a federal minister, president of a GPS component party, a state assemblyman and the Bintulu MP for six consecutive terms.
I consider Tiong a political heavyweight because he holds significant influence, power, and authority in the political arena. I also feel he has a strong ability to sway opinions and make important decisions.
And very importantly, Tiong has the trust and confidence of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and I believe the boss has faith in many of Tiong’s calls as a member of the cabinet.
Tiong has been involved in a number of controversies in the course of carrying out his ministerial duties and the prime minister has stood by his tourism minister, including the one this past week.
So, what was the issue about?
On Nov 2, the minister censured the Masjid Tanah MP in Parliament for making an issue of him consuming alcoholic beverages.
He said MPs should focus on helping the country develop its economy instead of raising issues that can disturb peace and harmony.
He also asked Mas Ermieyati whether it is wrong for a non-Muslim to drink since they are not prohibited from doing so.
“Masjid Tanah raised an issue about me getting drunk, that I drank alcohol. I am not Muslim, what is wrong with me drinking?” he said during the winding-up session for the Budget 2024 debate.
Two weeks ago, Mas Ermieyati raised the issue of Tiong dancing and drinking in public, sarcastically questioning if it was the minister’s unique way of promoting Malaysia to attract tourists.
Following the minister’s ticking off, the Masjid Tanah MP has not responded, up to this day which is almost a week later. Talk of being a tigress one minute and a mouse the next!
Mas Ermieyati should be thankful that Tiong has been quite kind in his language towards her in Parliament. Wan Saiful was not that lucky.
Also on Nov 2, the Bersatu lawmaker was told by Tiong that he should focus on his own corruption case rather than meddle in the affairs of others.
Tiong also threatened to take legal action against the Tasek Gelugor MP if the latter continued to “condemn” him for drinking alcohol.
Wan Saiful had earlier commented that it was wrong for the minister to be drunk in public. This was in response to videos of the minister drinking and dancing at an event in Pelangai, Pahang, last month.
In a Facebook post, Tiong charged at Wan Saiful, saying that it was the MP who has a bad public image now.
“I drink, I dance, does that make my image as a minister bad? Go and see what the people are saying.
“Your party talks about corruption every day but now your own party has a lot of people (facing) corruption (cases)”, said Tiong.
Wow! Wan Saiful deserves the sharp tongue-lashing from Tiong. The first-term MP should learn a lesson from this episode – don’t mess around with a strong personality like Tiong.
Indeed, Wan Saiful should take lessons from his senior PN colleagues in Parliament. There must be good reasons why none of them desire to take on Tiong but choose a take two steps back with him.
I think the minister has made his point clear – there must be respect for each other’s cultures within our multi-racial and multi-cultural society. Don’t talk negatively about each other, particularly on issues involving public behaviour and morality.
Tiong is not a Muslim and he can drink as he wishes. The minister enjoys letting his hair down with his audience during the appropriate occasions and he is free to do so.
To me and I’m sure to many others too, as long as Tiong performs and carries out his duties and responsibilities well as a minister, he can drink and dance all he wants.
It’s none of my business and neither is it Mas Ermieyati Samsudin’s or Wan Saiful Wan Jan’s or yours!
DISCLAIMER:
The views expressed here are those of the columnist and do not necessarily represent the views of New Sarawak Tribune.
