Oh 'Mat Salleh' , Where are thou ?
This is in response to the observation that I've done or stumbled upon all these while . I'd like to share this little finding that I have regarding this 'phenomenon' called 'Mat Salleh' or Whites .
Why do Mat Sallehs , be it male or female , get extra special treatment in Malaysia and almost every other parts of the world ? If you look at how we Malaysians behave in front of Mat Sallehs , we treat them so differently compared to our own people . When a Mat Salleh goes shopping , they get a "Hello Sir/Madam , Welcome . Can I help you ?" , but when it comes to their own 'rakyat jelata' , they only give you a smile with no greeting . What ? these people think only Mat Sallehs have money ? We Asians have money to spend too you know .
Rude , Petaling Street peddlers usually would just shout "Halo , jam mau ?" to us locals , while Mat Sallehs get a warm , friendly " Hello Boss , watches for you sir ?" . Wow , I was astonished at those tattooed blokes suddenly becoming such distinguished gentlemen . Why ? because they're Mat Sallehs . Bacause they're skin looks different , they talk different .
I'm not dissing Mat Sallehs here , I'm just trying to express my disgust at our attitude as Malaysians towards our own kind . Why can't we be as courteus and polite towards everyone instead of being selective about it ? I guess this attitude goes back in those colonial days I guess . We are 'programmed' to give extra attention and respect to Mat Sallehs compared to our own locals . This has spreaded across a lot of areas of our lives you know .
In terms of courtship , our local males and females seem to have this 'leniency' and 'affinity' towards Mat Salleh men and women . It does'nt matter if they're not half as good looking as our own locals , but theres this mentality of "Alaa, as long as he/she is a Mat Salleh , enough la " . I've seen a lot of Asians , young attractive women especially , going out with Mat Sallehs who look like they could be their grandfathers . "Janji Mat Salleh , cukup .. aku bangga la tunjuk kat orang ". Sad .
This is in response to the observation that I've done or stumbled upon all these while . I'd like to share this little finding that I have regarding this 'phenomenon' called 'Mat Salleh' or Whites .
Why do Mat Sallehs , be it male or female , get extra special treatment in Malaysia and almost every other parts of the world ? If you look at how we Malaysians behave in front of Mat Sallehs , we treat them so differently compared to our own people . When a Mat Salleh goes shopping , they get a "Hello Sir/Madam , Welcome . Can I help you ?" , but when it comes to their own 'rakyat jelata' , they only give you a smile with no greeting . What ? these people think only Mat Sallehs have money ? We Asians have money to spend too you know .
Rude , Petaling Street peddlers usually would just shout "Halo , jam mau ?" to us locals , while Mat Sallehs get a warm , friendly " Hello Boss , watches for you sir ?" . Wow , I was astonished at those tattooed blokes suddenly becoming such distinguished gentlemen . Why ? because they're Mat Sallehs . Bacause they're skin looks different , they talk different .
I'm not dissing Mat Sallehs here , I'm just trying to express my disgust at our attitude as Malaysians towards our own kind . Why can't we be as courteus and polite towards everyone instead of being selective about it ? I guess this attitude goes back in those colonial days I guess . We are 'programmed' to give extra attention and respect to Mat Sallehs compared to our own locals . This has spreaded across a lot of areas of our lives you know .
In terms of courtship , our local males and females seem to have this 'leniency' and 'affinity' towards Mat Salleh men and women . It does'nt matter if they're not half as good looking as our own locals , but theres this mentality of "Alaa, as long as he/she is a Mat Salleh , enough la " . I've seen a lot of Asians , young attractive women especially , going out with Mat Sallehs who look like they could be their grandfathers . "Janji Mat Salleh , cukup .. aku bangga la tunjuk kat orang ". Sad .
Career-wise , a Mat Salleh can be the most incompetent , useless worker back in his country , but when he comes to Malaysia , he lives a life of a diplomat . Free luxury car , free luxury house , a high salary etc ... Why ? because Mat Salleh maa.. Its true , I've been told of this story many times by fellow senior workers who's been around . I wonder , "Will we get the same treatment if we're at their country ? " . Hmm , so far I've never heard any encouraging stories to back that up .
Why aren't us Malaysians trying to help and give those kind of lifestyle to our own kind ? Having too many foreigners is not gonna help create more capable locals . Instead we should groom our own to hold such positions . I just think that we should practice meritocracy instead of the colour of our skin . If you have a local who's more capable than a foreign counterpart , it wouldn't harm having a local one right ?
Before anyone starts labelling me as a Mat Salleh hater , let me just say that this isn't about them . Its about us Malaysians , our attitude . Every race , be it Asian or Mat Salleh , have their good and bad sides . I just feel that we should at least open our eyes and start respecting our own kind first , before other foreigners .
Just an observation through these humble eyes . From a fellow Malaysian . That's all . No harm trying to write what's on your mind right ?
Why aren't us Malaysians trying to help and give those kind of lifestyle to our own kind ? Having too many foreigners is not gonna help create more capable locals . Instead we should groom our own to hold such positions . I just think that we should practice meritocracy instead of the colour of our skin . If you have a local who's more capable than a foreign counterpart , it wouldn't harm having a local one right ?
Before anyone starts labelling me as a Mat Salleh hater , let me just say that this isn't about them . Its about us Malaysians , our attitude . Every race , be it Asian or Mat Salleh , have their good and bad sides . I just feel that we should at least open our eyes and start respecting our own kind first , before other foreigners .
Just an observation through these humble eyes . From a fellow Malaysian . That's all . No harm trying to write what's on your mind right ?
man, that is so true. i mean, i love my mat saleh friends but i swear to God. its a mentality in Malaysia that is ultimately sad.
ReplyDeleteLike Naz said " Ni yang Mahathir marah ni"...Hehehehe!
ReplyDelete