Viewpoint: MP, State Assemblyman prevented from
entering Deepavali bazaar
First Published: 3:11pm, Nov 04,
2013
Last Updated: 3:11pm, Nov 04, 2013
fz.com
ON the eve of Deepavali (Nov 1),
Kluang MP Liew Chin Tong; State Assemblyman for Mengkibol, Tan Hong Pin and I,
along with several others decided to take a stroll along Jalan Station,
Kluang to see the stalls set up to peddle Deepavali wares.
At the entrance of the row of
stalls, a group of men holding out to be MIC officials stopped Chin Tong and
Hong Pin from entering on the ground that they had organised the stalls and
that they, as the purported organisers, were not given notice of Chin Tong and
Hong Pin arriving there.
Chin Tong politely pointed out that
it was a public road and he could walk. The men refused to yield and spoke
aggressively whilst claiming that it was an MIC organised event.
I did inform them that Chin Tong and
Hong Pin were coming with me to which they said I could enter but not Chin
Tong, Hong Pin and friends. Shortly after this, one Raman who claimed to be the
divisional chairman of MIC started talking aggressively.
While Raman was talking
aggressively, another person amongst them shouted at the photographer in the
national language to stop taking photographs (jangan ambil gambar).
Their behavior in stopping Chin Tong
and Hong Pin from Jalan Station was the most unIndian and unMalaysian attitude.
You never chase even your worst
enemy away from your home should they visit you on an auspicious day like
Deepavali. Jalan Station is not the exclusive property or MIC and neither was
there signage restricting entry to MIC members only.
In a festive season, more so in
Malaysia, the behavior of those who barricaded the road to prevent a Member of
Parliament and State Assemblyman from entering was despicable and not within
the Malaysian spirit for Deepavali.
As an Malaysian of Indian origin, I
am ashamed that some fellow Malaysians had behaved in such a despicable manner
that Friday evening.
K Siladass is a a Kluang resident
and a lawyer. He was DAP's Johor State Secretary in the 1960s.
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