By Dr Chen Man Hin, DAP life adviser

THE UNIQUE SUCCESS STORY OF ZAID IBRAHIM HAS SHATTERRED OLD MALAY MYTHS

I am deeply honoured to be asked by Zaid Ibrahim to sponsor the launching of the Mandarin version of his book ‘I TOO AM MALAY’

The book narrates the story of a series of unique achievements by Zaid Ibrahim, which make very interesting reading.

Basically, he was a poor kampong boy from Kelantan. His father moved around on a bicycle as there was no family car. At Kota Bahru he enrolled first at the Sultan Ismail primary school, joined the Sultan Ismail college at the age of 13. He was an avid reader and he knew how to choose his schools.

Next he chose to study at English College in Johore Bahru, a big jump from Kota Bahru. He chose the college because it was the ‘best college’ and had a mixture of students of different races, and besides it was near to Singapore where the action was.

From there he emigrated with a scholarship to Mara Institute of Technology in Kuala Lumpur, graduating in Law. With a Mara degree he went to London to read for the BAR exam.

His foray into a law career started well when he formed his own law firm Zaid Ibrahim & Co. By dint of hard wark and business savvy he landed a fat client PLUS. From then on he rocketed upwards and his firm became the largest in the country.

Although at the top of his profession, Zaid was not ready to rest on his laurels. His intelligence and quest for new challenges led him into politics which was in a political ferment.

The call of politics landed him first into PAS. He next joined UMNO, and here he was picked to be Minister of Law with the task to institute judiciary reforms.

However, he could not stomach PM moves on the ISA and his decision to exonerate Lingam on the graft videotape on judicial hanky panky. He resigned his law portfolio. This goes to show that Zaid is no ordinary man, but a person of high moral stature and principles.

He is now with PR and I think he would be happy in the company of like minded people with the common objective of working for a better country for all malaysians.

To sum up, Zaid Ibrahim is a typical Malay. He had a kampong upbringing in Kelantan. His family was poor and did not own a car.

He had a good education in government schools and colleges. Mara college turned him to be a lawyer.

After that he was on his own. Living by his wits, and built up a top class legal practice.

He was made a minister but gave it back on matters of principle. But now is in the opposition for a sacred cause — justice, democracy and transparency.

He has shattered an old myth which claimed Malays tend to be backward, laidback, lazy, no initiative and dependent on handouts.

Zaid has shown that the Malay are smart, keen to learn for knowledge, are dynamic and capable of hard work.

Hundreds of Malays have graduated as professionals, entrepreneurs and owners of businesses. There is a large Malay middle class.

The impression that Malsys are laidback is being propagated by Umno cronies who want more handouts so that they can hijack them for their own bank accounts.

Umno’s cronies who insist on Ketuanan Melayu and handouts as necessary for the of the Malay race, are actually creating a mental handicap for the Malays. It will cause the Malay to feel inferior, and they may not be able to survive in a global society where survival means one has to be competitive, efficient and disciplined.

Zaid Ibrahim has shown the modern global way for Malays to advance – through confidence, education, competitiveness and hard work.

[Speech by Dr Chen Man Hin during the launch of Zaid Ibrahim book on ‘I too am Malay’ (Mandarin version) in Kuala Lumpur on 27th March 2010]