CC Pung
Justice of Peace
Tokoh Wartawan Sabah and Labuan.
The world is bigger and more varied (at times in LP funny ways) than you think.
So shove your prejudices and any sense of superiority up where they belong.
Remember your grandma’s advice ‘one man’s meat is another’s poison’ and that you’re not as clever as you think
Watching the ongoing Paris 2024 Olympics where participants include those from countries I have never heard of, I’m reminded of the dangers of bias and presumption.
There’s a South Korean man 3m platform diver whose last name is “Haram”, and the Kenyan woman who won the 800m event is named “Chebet”.
Turkiye is a Muslim country.
But none of their women volleyball players wear headgear. They wore tight shorts and singlets like the other teams.
The top smasher of the team has many taboos and is bald.
Her name is Vargas, which is unusual for a Muslim.
BUT is she even Muslim?
I made these observations because of what I thought I knew about Turkiye, and interpret the Keyan and Korean name based on what bells they ringed to me who came from a little place under the coconut shell.
I’m not alone under the coconut shell.
There are many of them among my countrymen.
I had simply emerged from under the cover and recognise the danger of where I was.
But many self righteous others think they’re the centre of the world, that the world revolves around them, and their religion and their cock-eyed sense of values, right and wrong.
There’s in the Malaysian space a being called Akmal Salleh, a punk who is on tik tok a lot and invariably always wagging a finger and warning this person or another not to tread on so-called ‘sensivity’ of one group of people or another.
Akmal wants us to believe that he is been divinely assigned the task of declaring what is sacred and off-limit for debate.
He tried to portray himself as knowledgeable and influential. But what came across is an ignorant, racist-inclined shit-stirrer.
I have some choice moniker for him, but it’s unfit for publication.
‘Lanzou’ is the place in China famous for its halal hand-pulled noodles.
What does Akmal think about it, and would he mock Olympic athletes named “Pukee’ or ‘Tai Lan Ngong’, or any oddities coming from trying to have foreign names spelt with the 26 alphabets?
Nothing personal, Akmal. I’m just feel offended because you are an embarrassment to me, a Malaysian.
Get out of your coconut shell now and then. It helps to keep your racial ego and foul chauvinism in check.
Editor: The views expressed here are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of the talantang.com
