Umno youth chief Dr Mohamad Akmal Saleh is on fire. The Merlimau assemblyman dominates headlines as he emerges as the loudest voice of the Muslims in Malaysia as identity politics has been on steroids for the past few months, surpassing even the Islamist Pas and the nationalist Bersatu.
From recognizing Chinese villages as UNESCO heritage sites, to vernacular schools, to acknowledging bak kut teh as a national food, to the boycott movement, and the 'Allah' socks, Akmal has mounted challenges and locked horns with various PH personalities.
Netizens were quick to point fingers at him as Molotov bombs attacked several KK Mart outlets, though police had yet to identify the suspects.
In the past few months, Akmal has:
1) Called for a review of the vernacular school ecosystem, to address polarisation in the country.
2) Demanded the sacking of Tourism Minister Tiong King Sing over the acknowledgment of a pork soup dish, Bak Kut Teh as a national heritage food.
3) Spar with Housing Minister Nga Kor Ming over the latter's suggestion to nominate Chinese villages as UNESCO heritage sites.
In his latest row with the Teluk Intan MP, he even labeled Kor Ming as ‘stupid’, in his latest row with the Teluk Intan MP over calls for a boycott of certain brands in light of the Israel ongoing onslaught in Gaza.
Sabah almost made a hero out of Akmal when he was arrested in Kota Kinabalu, though police later confirmed that he was released after his statement was taken.
It seems that he is alone. Umno, which champions Malay and Muslim causes, looks muted and divided on its support to its own youth chief. Akmal has been branded ‘rebellious’ but the reality is Akmal is not alone. What he expressed are genuine concerns of the Malay-Muslim base- concerns that non-Muslims have overlooked.
The usual understanding is that politicians, like Dr Akmal, are leveraging race and religious issues as a springboard for their careers. But this explanation is at best, shallow.
Let's look at the some of the responses so far.
- Political analyst Bridget Welsh has coined a term, ‘Akmal Gambit’ to describe his action, accusing the doctor's action as damaging and aims to seek a ‘calculated advantage’ in national politics.
- Former Deputy Chief Minister of Penang Dr P. Ramasamy said that Akmal's boycott call may led to ‘unintended consequences’ which include the firebomb attempts at KK Mart outlets. Some interesting quote from P. Ramasamy may describe what most Non-Muslims think of the ‘Allah’ socks issue.
"Common sense would have raised the question of why a leading commercial establishment like KK Mart would want to distribute socks with the word Allah printed on them.
It was just a few pieces of socks but the damage was done. It is not that the incident should not be taken seriously, but a more sensible approach would have been better."
Now this is the problem by talking about Akmal's reaction alone. The Non-Muslims risk missing the forest for one tree. What this kind of thinking does is dismissing those genuine concerns, resentments and rancor of the Malay-Muslim community. It does not peel off the depth of these issues and the many layers that make up the Malays' reaction to the developments. By looking at these events in a silo, the non-Muslims would have a hard time understanding why the Malay Muslims are outraged over socks, pork soup, or a doormat. Focusing on Akmal's reaction as if this is the only angle we can talk about will lead to a cul de sac in seeking the big picture.
These issues are just the tip of the iceberg. The undercurrent in the Malay psyche- a culmination of many factors that have played out over the years- cannot be dismissed.
It was never about socks. Or soups. Or doormats.
The KK Mart saga is a manifestation of something bigger and more structural, some of which had been simmering since Merdeka. Firstly is the lack of integration of the Non-Muslims. “What's the matter? It's just socks,” they might wonder. For the Malays, religion is a line you don't cross. You can discuss and say many things about other issues, but not with religion.
Here, Adrian Chin puts it perfectly on his Facebook post.
"Non-Muslim don’t have to understand why kalimah Allah or Prophet Muhammad printed on socks is sensitive. It’s fine if non-Muslims don’t understand why it is sensitive.
You just have to accept it and respect it, as how the Muslims accept that Indian Hindus putting a red on forehead, Chinese Taoists burning papers and Christians hanging a crucifix is not something to be insulted.
Secondly, the Non-Muslims must realize they have a lion's share in pushing the Malays more to the right. Just take a look at the comments section on social media platforms, particularly left-leaning media. In this 2018 letter, Halimah Mohd Said, president of the Association of Voices of Peace, Conscience and Reason has already warned of the 'Malay-bashing' phenomena. It can be argued that Non-Muslims are induced to say those things by some Malays themselves. But imitating those ‘progressive’ Malays means the Non-Muslims will be left in dark when it comes to reading the Malays' psyche.
Whenever there was a problem in this country, whether its corruption, or abuse of power, fingers are quickly pointed to the Malays. “Look it's your people that has done this. We Non-Malays are clean." And so on.
The Malays, who may never reacted to those insults, will keep those comments in mind next time they go to the ballot boxes. Those words, the demands, and the actions by the Non-Malays are like straws on the camel's back. KK Mart is another straw. If this is not stopped, the nation will be left wondering what's the last straw.
Thirdly, the KK Mart incident is a manifestation of another resentment that is Marxist in nature. The Malays, who regard themselves as the owner and inheritor of this country, are simply not happy with their economic status. Here, Hisham Rais explains the issue beyond Akmal's reaction.
"The KK Mart case is a manifestation of the Malay-Muslim Conscient that they are left behind in terms of economy. Economy, in this country is still in the hand of the Chinese. In politics, real power-absolute power- is economic power.
The Chinese control the economy in Tanah Melayu, therefore the ones with power are the Chinese. Behind all of these manifestations is the scramble for economic resources."
The Malay anger this time was no different than those provoked by Pakatan Harapan when it first came to power in 2018. It was never about socks.
Ahmad Mustakim is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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