It is a victory for the religious hardliners.
Members of the government had met with Winepak, makers of Timah whisky, on the issue of the distiller now reluctantly agreeing to change the name of their alcohol.
BELOW: Tweets by political commenter James Chin
The government battalion at the meeting yesterday with the Chinese-owned company Winepak comprised:
- Jakim
- Minister of Religious Affairs Idris Ahmad
- Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Alexander Nanta Linggi
- Communications and Multimedia Minister Annuar Musa
- National Unity Minister Halimah Sadique
- Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry sec-gen Hasnol Zam Zam Ahmad
- Energy and Natural Resources Ministry deputy sec-gen Abdul Wahid Abu Salim
- MyIPO DG Abdul Haris Lakar
- reps from Home Ministry
- reps from International Trade and Industry Ministry
This Timah controversy would never have taken on such problematic proportions or perhaps even surface at all back in 2004 when there were 51 Chinese MPs in the BN government.
Of these, 31 were from MCA while Gerakan had 10 Chinese MPs, and the rest of the BN components contributed another 10 Chinese MPs between them.
There had been altogether 84 non-Muslim MPs in the BN government of 2004 — see full name list HERE.
In comparison, there were only 67± non-Muslim MPs in the former Harapan federal government.
(Note: Such a plus-minus caveat on their 67 non-Muslim MPs is necessary because Harapan was host to the froggiest government in Malaysian history, and it’s therefore difficult to keep an accurate tally of the ever shape-shifting Mahathir 2.0 coalition.)
BELOW: Under Harapan, the Christians dominated the judiciary in the form of AG Tommy Thomas, Law Minister Zachary David Liew Vui Keong and CJ Richard Malanjum
Difference between 2004 and 2021
Today’s BN-PN government is a Malay Muslim hegemon which came about as a reaction (Sheraton Move) to the DAP’s 22-month occupancy in Putrajaya.
The Malay political polity banded together to oust the DAP which has only one Malay MP among its 42 MPs.
Ultimately the Chinese voted in 2018 to have 42 DAP reps – many of them Christians – in parliament as the opposition today, compared to 2004 when there were 84 non-Muslim government MPs.
Our present race and religion friction is the handiwork of Ubah.
In the dozen or so years since 2008 when Pakatan first took control of some west coast states, our political environment has changed irrevocably.
New Malaysia is the end product of DAP input, and what we have now is political Christianity to rival political Islam.
The boy who cried wolf
Dapsters accuse Malays of a paranoid tendency to see crosses everywhere.
Muslims here are not alleged, however, to be fearful of Buddhist, Hindu or Sikh religious symbols. Only of the Christian cross symbol.
Yes, the cross you see on the facade of Grace Residence condo in Jelutong, Penang pictured below is really a cross.
BELOW: The ‘Jelutong cross’ touched religious sensitivities two years ago; incidentally Jelutong is the parliament constituency of DAP’s “rage factory” RSN Rayer
DAP supporters (Penang is ruled by their party) blithely denied that the cross on the Jelutong condominium was any sort of Christian symbol.
The Muslims were nonetheless right not to believe the Jelutong denial and damage control. Better to trust one’s own eyes.
After the hushed-up Jelutong controversy, non-Christian non-Chinese Malaysians have grown more wary and correctly suspicious.
The Jelutong episode occurred when Harapan was still the government. The current Timah dispute is occurring when Harapan is no longer the government.
Some Muslims now see a kopiah on the Timah whisky label. But this time, what they think they see may not actually be what they imagine.
‘The Boy Who Cried Wolf’ teaches that it is counter productive to raise false alarms because any later true claims will be subsequently disregarded.
What’s happening with Timah is a variation on the ‘crying wolf’ moral lesson.
DAP’s Jelutong MP cried wolf when he claimed that speaking Tamil to an elephant is insulting the language.
The Nons cried wolf when they claimed that Muslims are paranoid to see a cross on the Jelutong condo. (It is false to claim that Muslims are suffering confusion and paranoia because in truth the cross was there, and in my opinion its shape was intentionally designed into the building).
Now the whisky distillers are claiming that their brand name ‘Timah’ has nothing to do with a Muslim woman. Unfortunately, (sections of) the Islamic authorities are showing some scepticism of their story.
Winepak is a victim of the Nons crying wolf as well as the sociopolitical climate created by the DAP.
Helen Ang 
many muslim msia is konpius, cant differentiate timah and fatimah, wosrt than the conpius lge.
You are a non~Muslim and I assume not a Christian.
Without the burden of being faithful to one’s religion to tip the scale of objectivity one way or another, does a non-partisan like you think the demand for a name change is justified?
If yes, then the verdict favoring a name change is in order. Nothing to see. Does not matter how many non-Muslim MP we have sitting in Parliament. Right is right.
If no, then we have MPs not able to rise above their obligation as legislators with responsibilities of nation building. It is on them.
No, I don’t think the demand for a name change is justified.
Why not name it Tokong. Let see if LGE did not jump.
The DAP has a big problem with its Christian image in a Muslim majority country. What is it trying to achieve when it’s controlling leaders who acclaimed to be Chinese looking on the outside but Western on the inside, kept on rocking the limits of tolerance ? I am very certain that the 95% Chinese who voted them into POWER in May 2018 had not the slightest intention of creating conflict with others daily. The Chinese want Peace, Harmony and Prosperity. Not daily quarrels of no merit or nit picking to the nth degree. As I have said before, the Chinese are law abiding, hard-working and pragmatic people. The DAP leaders are mainly from the Lao clan and not the Han Chinese. The difference is like chalk and cheese especially their comparative behaviour. Only certain people recognise this subtle difference. These people like the British, LKY and others exploited them by knowing the weaknesses of these Laos of China. A very few Malays employ them as secretaries because they could keep their mouths shut and hard-working. Even in World’s best Singapore, these Lao Chinese sometimes go into orbit by doing the zaniest things that could be imagined. It is high time the Han Chinese recognise they should not support these one-screw loose Lao Chinese before more serious incidents take place not of their asking in a country which is at peace, harmony and prosperity. The majority of the Han Chinese cannot run off to the DAP homeland. LKY said so in 2002. Quote, ” When the riots occur in KL, this time we will grow barnacles in our hearts and close our doors to them (Chinese) !’
Provoke and there will another shock and awe move. This time may be irreversible and can last painfully long time
The result of the DAP’s alleged agitation on racial and religious issues has produced a counter response in the most unexpected ways from ‘ harmless labels’ to discriminatory laws imposed on retail shops which had freedom for decades to a suggestion in the Dewan Rakyat for the Government to supply washable sanitary pads to 130,000 teenagers. The reason why these have always been disposable is because its HYGIENIC. Of all places, such a suggestion in the Dewan Rakyat !