YOURSAY | 'It is what's in the heart and head that matters.'

Divided views over tycoon's daughter's involvement in Muda

MS: Muda should be suspicious of those objecting to people like Dian Lee only because she is the daughter of a wealthy developer (Lee Kim Yew) and a known crony of former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

The background and affiliation of these "conscientious" objectors should be ascertained before engaging them in what is really a pointless debate.

Of course, there is a chance for crookedness and betrayals to surface in this young party operating in a political system that trades heavily in inducements, threats, bribes and harassment.

Lee is being targeted because of her Country Heights pedigree and everything shady that it implies. If this scrutinising of candidates is to be the new rule in the game, then everyone in all parties should be similarly put under the microscope and routinely exposed.

The problem is that neither the media nor the "conscientious" objectors (known and unknown) have time for it.

Newday: Rich, middle income or poor - there is no pre-qualification for an aspiring politician. It is what is in the heart and head that matters.

I do not pretend to speak for Dian, but she would be acutely aware of the relationships of her tycoon father has with others, especially with Dr M.

Does this make her a lesser person? Of course not. Does it make her a person who is not to be trusted? Of course not.

The proof is in action upholding morals and ethics. That is all we need. We need politicians from all backgrounds to run this country, not one specific class.

Malaysian.1548239364942: The problem here is not whether she is a developer's daughter, elite, or young.

The problem is that she is the daughter of a specific developer who is a Mahathir crony and that's a no-go because we are talking about Pakatan Harapan giving up safe/semi-safe seats for Muda to contest. This could be a similar situation involving Bersatu in 2018.

Do you need to be reminded of how Muda leader Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman behaved in the last week before Mahathir sank his own government? How he came out with all guns blazing to defend the old dictator against the very people he is now begging for seats?

And you still trust Muda? No wonder, as the old dictator said, Malaysians mudah lupa! (easily forget).

FairMalaysian: I can understand why Dian is being vilified. It is not as much that concerns her wealth and position but her stand and feel for the masses, particularly the plight of the B40 (bottom 40 percent) group, etc. Saying is one thing but believing in it is something altogether different.

Maybe Muda should highlight some of the work or issues she had handled and dealt with in the past. This is the people's court and nothing is ever personal.

Tok Guru Nik Aziz Nik Mat and Abdul Hadi Awang came from the same party but the perceptions of the two are very different. Tunku Abdul Rahman was royalty but was well accepted by Malaysians.

Ismail Sabri Yaakob came from a humble family. By all accounts, he is not tainted by corruption but yet people's acceptance level of him is low. That is politics and the people are the judges.

The acceptance level of female candidates in DAP is extremely high, irrespective of any background they come from. But that is the homework the DAP does in selecting candidates.

Whether the voters accept her or not will depend on the homework Muda does. This can make or break Muda's image in the long run. People really don't care whether she is rich or poor. What is important is people's acceptance of the said candidate.

BetterMY: Again, we see a big number of readers jumping to conclusions. It is entirely possible that Dian is joining politics on her own convictions, and not necessarily as a shadow lobbyist for her father. If we are serious about maturing as a society, we need to be able to judge objectively.

Also, why are we quick to discount people of good calibre with corporate management competencies. This could help us in the same way as it has helped other developed nations.

Please remember even the illustrious Pak Jokowi (Joko Widodo) from Indonesia comes from a corporate/entrepreneurial background and it has bolstered his ability to lead cleanly.

BrownCheetah9736: It’s good to see young people being active politically.

But when children of vested interest tycoons (like Larry Sng, son of tycoon Sng Chee Hua) get involved, the political party has to be sure that their party agenda is not hijacked to serve vested interests.

CitizenSaro: In politics, optics matter. But do we know exactly what is "winning optics" in Malaysian politics?

Setting optics aside, if we want a new Malaysia that is based on merit, fairness and equality irrespective of race, religion, gender and colour of Malaysians vying for survival or success in any sector, then this young, Chinese origin, rich and female Malaysian should have equal opportunities to be in politics to serve the nation and bear brickbats as well.

As Syed Saddiq has mentioned many times, he was the first one to declare his assets as a minister. And so shall this person if she is supported by the rakyat.

OCT: Rakyat should judge Dian by her deliverables and results and not based on her family background.

The rakyat has seen the son of a PM who was educated in the UK turn out as the biggest crook and called a kleptocrat.

The making of a good statesman comes from the good virtues and commitment of the person and not the family. Family background does help but there is a limit to that.

If the rakyat want Malaysia to be great again, it has to come from the youngsters nowadays. They are the ones who can lead Malaysia out of the doldrums with their energetic mind and body.

The old politicians have served their purpose and done their national service. It's time to exit gracefully to let the youngsters lead the way.

The Wakandan: I would not see her as so much a daughter of a tycoon who is an associate of Mahathir but more of a young person (relatively) who wants to enter politics. For that, I would not judge her now.

Why is it a problem that she has such a father? She is being shot even before she can fly.

The offspring need not necessarily be clones of their parents. In fact, they can be totally different. We have seen that along the path of history. Buddha, St Augustine or St Francis – all came from the elitists, kings and nobility. Yet they pursued their ideal, to serve, to find justice and truth.

Give Lee a chance. It is too early to speculate now. She will not last if she has no merit of her own. After all, this is a democracy and the next election will come again.

We have been giving the same old faces repeated chances and they have destroyed the country.

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