I saw three rainbows when I entered Otago to visit its principal city Dunedin. What does it signify?

Rainbows are part of the myths of many cultures around the world. There is a myriad of beliefs concerning the rainbow. The complex diversity of rainbow myths are far-reaching, as are their inherent similarities.

One mythology about rainbows is particularly pertinent and even poignant in my present tour of Australian and New Zealand citizens to meet with the Malaysian Diaspora.

It says that there will come a day when people of all races, colours and creeds will put aside their differences. They will come together in love, joining hands in unification, to heal the Earth and all Her children, bringing peace, understanding and healing everywhere they go.

The three rainbows settles seamlessly with the main intention of my visit to meet the Malaysian Diaspora in Australia and New Zealand – about the building of a New Malaysia. Are they a sign of great changes in Malaysia?

Malaysia had been given a second chance as a result of the historic 14th General

Election on May 9, 2018. to re-set the nation-building process as we had lost our way in the past six decades, not only losing out to other nations which had been behind us in different indices of nation-building, but getting trapped in a trajectory which can only end in Malaysia becoming a failed state, a rogue democracy, a kakistocracy and global kleptocracy!

We must not waste our “second chance” to make Malaysia a great nation or to borrow Bapa Malaysia Tunku Abdul Rahman’s words, “a beacon of light in a disturbed and distracted world” – a New Malaysia of greater national unity, integrity, democracy, rule of law, excellence, justice and prosperity, where we can leverage on the assets of the diverse races, religions, languages, cultures and civilizations which meet in confluence in Malaysia to form the basis for a new civilization based on the best values and assets of the world’s greatest religions and civilizations.

I had been thinking about the task and mission of a New Malaysia and the Malaysian Diaspora in the five-hour road trip from Christchurch to Dunedin, which was why I found the three rainbows on entering Dunedin quite significant.

The more than a million Malaysians in the worldwide Diaspora had made great contributions to the countries they have migrated to, and can still contribute to the making of a New Malaysia – although in the 1970s they were dismissed as “Good riddance to bad rubbish”.

Why should the contributions of the Malaysian Diaspora be negatived and undermined by one man in the Malaysian Diaspora – 1MDB scandal “wonder crook” Jho Low and the other mastermind of the 1MDB scandal turning Malaysia into a global kleptocracy, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, former Prime Minister of Malaysia.

This should be food for thought by the 30 million Malaysians and the Malaysian Diaspora

(Media Statement by DAP MP for Iskandar Puteri Lim Kit Siang in Dunedin, New Zealand on Wednesday, 26th September 2018)