by Kong See Hoh
The Sun
28 May 2013
PETALING JAYA (May 28, 2013): Former deputy higher education minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah borrowed the expression “Liu Bei borrows Jingzhou” (… never to return) from the classic Chinese novel Romance Of The Three Kingdoms to illustrate the reason for the Chinese response when MCA “loaned out” Gelang Patah in the 13th general election.
He said the Chinese anger over the move was one of the reasons for MCA and Gerakan’s electoral rout that forced both to stay out of the cabinet.
“I know the Chinese saying (Liu Bei borrows Jingzhou) means borrowing something without ever returning it.
“Regardless of whether Chinese voters agreed with DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang, they felt the MCA chief himself should have taken on Lim in Gelang Patah,” Saifuddin, who is an Umno supreme council member, told China Press in an interview published today.
He declined to comment when it was pointed out that there is only one Chinese minister and one Chinese deputy minister now.
Instead, he used the Chinese expression “Liu Bei borrows Jingzhou” to describe how the Chinese felt.
He said some Chinese friends told him they were angry because they deemed it a kind of setback when MCA unconditionally “loaned” Gelang Patah to a Barisan Nasional component party to contest.
He said for the Chinese, to give Lim due respect has nothing to do with whether they support DAP or not.
So by “loaning out” Gelang Patah when Lim parachuted into the constituency, the Chinese community’s interpretation= was that the party had chickened out, he said.
He said the Chinese stress respect and believed MCA should not have given the seat to Umno even though the latter fielded a heavyweight (former Johor mentri besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman).
Saifuddin said MCA suffered another serious setback also because of other issues such as fair competition in the corporate world.
#1 by SENGLANG on Wednesday, 29 May 2013 - 2:30 pm
In “Liu Bei Borrow Jingzhou” Liu Bei was the big winner, where he got Jingzhou plus a wife, but in the current ” UMNO Borrow Gelang Patah” UMNO patah sayap with MCA being total wipe out. Two different result.
Any way the culprit to Gelang Patah was CSL who has real chicken out and give up GP to UMNO. He was the one who has first propose Ghani and UMNO camp was too glad to consent by sending Ghani to pit of no return. They want to get rid of him any way
#2 by Bigjoe on Wednesday, 29 May 2013 - 4:41 pm
Oh. Please. If you have not read the literature and thought about it don’t pretend.
Liu Bei was an upstart, that borrowed from the establishment because they needed it. MCA is not the establishment and neither is Ghani and UMNO the upstart.. The allegory is simply WAY OFF THE MARK..
The Chinese voted on national issue, its the trend of voters everywhere even in dictatorial successful Singapore. Its evolution of maturing society..
The only classic they need to refer to for lesson is Animal House by George Orwell..
#3 by buylower2003 on Wednesday, 29 May 2013 - 7:11 pm
For an ex deputy education minister, what a garbled misuse of expressions! What a poor analogy using history!
To carry this further, so who is CSL? Sun Quan? not even close.
And who is Naj? Cao Cao? looool more like Dong Zhuo looooooooooooooooooool!
#4 by Bunch of Suckers on Thursday, 30 May 2013 - 2:52 am
After the GE13, these suckers begin to talk craps and cccocks as to save their faces!!!! Only those Mama Cums A$$ suckers angry!!!!