YOURSAY | ‘We should accept our history as part of our journey as a nation.’

No need to rename George Town, Penang exco says

P Dev Anand Pillai: This is what PAS lawmakers are known for. They can never come up with economic policies that are beneficial for the people.

They are only known for commenting on why single ladies are not married and/or changing the names of well-known places to something they prefer.

Just imagine if they are to govern at the federal level with about 150 seats in Parliament.

Perhaps Permatang Pauh MP Muhammad Fawwaz Mohamad Jan should come down to Kuala Lumpur, Petaling Jaya, Subang Jaya, Shah Alam, Ipoh, Malacca City and Johor Bahru to see how many housing estates, condominiums, apartments and townships have names which have no link to Malay culture.

Yet, the Malays there are living in harmony with other non-Malays.

Proarte: Changing George Town to Tanjung Penaga is the sick notion of “Ketuanan Melayu” raising its ugly head.

The question is why not George Town?

After all, the British colonials gave the vast majority of cities in Malaysia Malay names, although almost all were populated and developed mainly by the Chinese community.

I wonder what the reaction would be if there is a suggestion that Kuala Lumpur be renamed “Ah Loy” in recognition of the great contribution Yap Ah Loy made to the development of Kuala Lumpur from a “muddy estuary” to a booming economic hub.

Mazhilamani: It is unbelievable when politicians refer to non-Malays as though we are not Malaysians. Fawwaz should go back in time, to know or read who was originally enslaved or died for Malaya to enrich it.

I don't blame him, but the policymakers who have messed up our education system have misled and misdirected students.

Education is designed to acquire knowledge and know the truth, so we can either learn from it, good or bad, and what to adopt or reject.

Now why change the name of George Town to Tanjong Penaga? George Town is a well-established name.

Does he have a clue or know the cost incurred for changing the name? Find out first.

There are so many things for him to highlight, especially things that can benefit the voters. Instead, he picks George Town to highlight.

Teej Dhillon: Amazing how our politicians continue to touch on everything under the sun except what the rakyat elected them to do - improve day-to-day life, better the economy, improve healthcare, reduce crime and so on.

I am quite stunned every day seeing this generation of politicians create issues out of nothing when Malaysians are struggling every day with the rising cost of living and worsening economic outlook.

Freethinker: Fawwaz, when commenting on the exclusion of Malay culture in the promotional video for the George Town Festival 2024, asked if this is another agenda planned to portray Penang as being owned by certain races.

Which race is he referring to?

Why not be clear about that? The omission of Malay culture was wrong, but for you to play it up as a racial matter is even worse.

You can reprimand the state government for their failure, but you should not play up racial matters. We call that “cari pasal” (looking for trouble).

Chefoo: I expected the topic about changing George Town’s name to crop up a while ago. Nothing surprises me when it comes to PAS.

Regarding the exclusion of Malay culture in the promotions for the George Town Festival, a stern warning must be given to the organisers.

Malaysia is a multi-cultural country. The festival’s mistake will be used as a DAP punching bag in future elections.

TC: Non-Malays who voted against a government party or stayed home to sulk over issues during the Sungai Bakap by-election are advised to take a breather and envisage what will happen to their beautiful, developed and progressive Penang if PAS or Perikatan Nasional take over the state government.

A moment of emotional anger will cost you dearly.

P Ramlee: Perhaps, Fawwaz should bring his team down to Singapore for a few days, to see how Singapore as a first-world nation, using English as their official language, still maintains so many Malay street names for the sake of historical and heritage applications.

More importantly, they still keep “Majulah Singapura” as their national anthem and Istana as their official Presidential Palace.

OMG: Is Fawwaz the same bloke who, a while back, toured a Penang shopping complex with some religious agenda?

He now asks that we do not ape what the colonisers left behind. We are forced to use words like “notifikasi” and “spesifikasi” unless we wish to string together half a dozen Bahasa Malaysia words to replace them. To these dudes, form is everything.

Substance and content don't matter. One of the many reasons why we lag decades behind Singapore.

Not Bitten Twice: History cannot be changed. We should accept our history as part of our journey as a nation. This is what adds colour to it.

A painting painted by the brush of time. Just as we embrace all parts of our growing-up years with the ups and downs included. This is what makes us who we are.

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