“Of all the preposterous assumptions of humanity over humanity, nothing exceeds most of the criticisms made on the habits of the poor by the well-housed, well-warmed, and well-fed.”

- American novelist Herman Melville

COMMENT | Well actually, the political elites have intervened in the plight of families seeking their due.

A successful conclusion after a 19-year struggle occurred in 2019 for 24 families from the Ladang Bangi estate in Selangor when they were offered keys to their new homes, thanks to the assistance of - you guessed it - Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM).

From the reportage by PSM on Feb 21, 2019 - “For 19 years, the 24 families faced court trials, constant harassment by gangsters to vacate their homes, and some were even thrown into jail by the authorities for fighting for their rights.”

The families were so happy that the homes “…came equipped with a refrigerator, TV, cabinet, and air-conditioners”. The sartorially challenged S Arutchelvan joked, “Even I am staying in a low-cost unit and I don’t have such facilities.”

Of course, this happened just before the Semenyih by-election. This goes to show that elections may not bring about changes but apparently days leading up to elections do.

These types of gangster tactics are not new, of course. As Penang Deputy Chief Minister II P Ramasamy said...