Remembering Syed Hussein

Professor Syed Hussein was the Head of the Malay Studies Department, at NUS, from 1977 to 1988.  I had met Syed Hussein on several occasions.  I had also heard him speak at some university functions.  I remember him as a brilliant scholar, an eloquent speaker, and someone who was charismatic and charming.  I also formed the impression that he was an original thinker, a man of principle and of courage.  I am therefore glad to be able to honour his memory today, his 91^st birthday.

Honouring His Legacy

I will now proceed to identify and discuss four important components of his intellectual legacy.

Thomas Stamford Raffles:  Schemer or Reformer?

In 1971, Syed Hussein published a book on Raffles, entitled, Thomas Stamford Raffles: Schemer or Reformer?  A discussion of Raffles in 2019, is particularly relevant because we are commemorating the 200^th anniversary of the founding of Singapore by Raffles and Farquhar.  Syed Hussein was against the canonization of Raffles.  He made the argument that Raffles was not the humanitarian reformer, which his admirers had made him out to be.  Instead, he was a schemer and an opportunist.

In 2019, we have a more accurate and balanced view of Raffles.   We acknowledge that if Raffles and Farquhar had not chosen to establish a trading post, for the East India Company, in 1819, in Singapore, we would probably not be here today.  We also acknowledge the wisdom of Raffles in making Singapore a free port, open to ships of all nations and in upholding free trade.

However, we also know that Raffles was a schemer and a self-promoter. He claimed credit for the good work done by his number two, William Farquhar.  He sacked Farquhar and falsely accused him of various wrongdoings.  Raffles had also behaved disgracefully as the Lieutenant-Governor of Java.  He humiliated the Sultan of Jogjakarta and looted his Palace.

Every nation has its founding myths.  Singapore is no exception.  We have put Raffles on the pedestal and he will remain there.  However, we have discovered our pre-colonial history.  We have also identified several Singaporean pioneers, of different races, who had contributed to the success of the British colony.  And, at long last, William Farquhar’s contributions have been acknowledged and a new garden, on Fort Canning, has been built in his name.

The Myth of the Lazy Native

In 1977, Syed Hussein published a very important book, entitled, The Myth of the Lazy Native.  This book was path-breaking.  In his book, Syed Hussein pointed out that, for centuries, western literature had portrayed the native peoples of maritime Southeast Asia as lazy.  Syed Hussein was correct to point out that the West had invented this stereotype of the lazy natives in order to justify their colonisation of Southeast Asia.  Another myth invented by the West was that the natives were uncivilised and therefore in need of being civilized by the West.

Syed Hussein’s book had a profound impact on many scholars around the world.  One of them was Professor Edward Wadie Said of Columbia University, in New York.  Professor Said was born in Palestine.  He had followed his father to the United States.  In 1978, a year after Syed Hussein’s book was published, Professor Said published his great book, Orientalism.  The book is a critique of the cultural representations of the orient, in Western literature.  The book argues that there is a subtle but persistent eurocentric prejudice against Arabs and Muslims.    It would not be wrong to say that Syed Hussein Alatas and Edward Said were the two founding fathers of post-colonial studies.

Multiculturalism

Professor Syed Hussein was a strong believer in multiculturalism.  He rejected race-based politics in Malaysia.  In 1968, he and Dr Tan Chee Koon, the leader of the Labour Party, founded a new political party called Gerakan based on the principle of multiculturalism.   It participated in the 1969 general elections and won several seats.  To celebrate its electoral victories, the party held a political rally and procession in Kuala Lumpur.  When the procession entered the Malay areas of the city, some Gerakan members made the mistake of jeering at the Malay residents.  Although the party apologised, UMNO held a retaliatory rally on the next day.  The rally got out of hand and turned into an anti-Chinese riot.  More than 180 people were killed and a state of emergency was declared.  Parliament was suspended and did not reconvene until 1971.

In 1972, Gerakan, under the leadership of Dr Lim Chong Eu, decided to join the UMNO-led alliance.  Both Syed Hussein and Tan Chee Koon resigned from the party.  They formed a new party called PEKEMAS, based on their belief in multiculturalism.  The party was dissolved in 1978.

Although Syed Hussein’s attempt to move Malaysia away from race-based politics, was unsuccessful, he never stopped to believe in the superiority of multiculturalism.  I think history will vindicate him.

Anti-Corruption

The cause which Syed Hussein was most devoted to was his life-long campaign against corruption.  In 1968, he published a book, The Sociology of Corruption.  In 1986, he published a second book on the subject, The Problem of Corruption.  In 1990, he published a third book entitled, Corruption:  It’s Nature, Causes and Functions.  In 1993, he contributed the entry on corruption, to the Oxford Companion on World Politics.  In 1999, he published his fourth book, Corruption and the Destiny of Asia.

Professor Syed Hussein was right to campaign against corruption in the world, especially in Asia.  Corruption is unfortunately rampant in Asia.  It undermines good governance, the rule of law and justice.  It breeds a culture of impunity.

I want to share with you the following quotations from Syed Hussein on corruption:

• “For the Third World countries, corruption will remain the number one problem for a long time to come”;
• “There have been instances in history where a leader was probably not corrupt but was surrounded by corrupt supporters. Such a leader is worse than a corrupt one from the point of eliminating corruption”;
• “The answer is a clean political leadership”; and
• “It is not the political system or the economic condition that is decisive in the elimination of corruption but the nature of the leadership in power”.

Syed Hussein was, of course, right when he said that corruption exists in all kinds of political systems and in different economic conditions.  We find corruption in democracies and in communist countries.  We find corruption in developed and in developing countries.  We find corruption in the East and in the West.  Syed Hussein was also right when he said that the answer is clean political leaders.

Conclusion

Syed Hussein passed away on the 23^rd of January 2007 at the  age of 82.  Twelve years have passed since he left us.  His intellectual legacy will never be forgotten. Post-colonial studies, multiculturalism and anti-corruption were the three causes closest to his heart.  They remain as relevant today as they were during his life time.

One of the advantages of having lived abroad is that you are able to compare the behaviour of Singaporeans to that of the people in other cities and countries. Singaporeans behave very well in many areas of life.

However, when it comes to driving, our behaviour is quite atrocious. I describe below the seven bad habits of the Singapore driver.

1. Speeding

Singapore is full of Lewis Hamilton-wannabees. The Singapore driver loves speed. He ignores the speed limit and races from traffic light to traffic light. He will accelerate his car even when he can see that the traffic light ahead is red. The Singapore driver has an addiction to speed. The situation has got worse since the arrival of F1!

2. Overtaking

The second bad habit of the Singapore driver is the impulse to overtake the car in front of him. This could be due to our kiasu mindset. We must always stay ahead of the competition.

In Singapore, you have to watch out for cars overtaking you from the right, which is legal, as well as cars overtaking you from the left, which is not lawful.

The Singapore driver will overtake you even when it makes no sense to do so. I have often encountered a situation in which I am approaching a traffic intersection and I intend to go straight. The driver behind me intends to make a left turn. He will overtake me and force me to slow down so that he can make that left turn. In such a situation, it makes no sense for him to overtake me.

3. Red Light

As we approach an intersection, we are supposed to slow down and to stop when the traffic light changes from green to yellow and then to red.

Most Singapore drivers tend to accelerate as they approach a traffic light and beating the red light without being caught seems to be a national sport.

The danger is that when a driver proceeds too soon after the traffic light has turned green, he may have a collision with a car which is speeding through a red light.

I know of one case when such a collision resulted in a fatality. An innocent child, sitting in the front passenger’s seat, was killed when a car, speeding through a red light, hit the car driven by the child’s father which was proceeding lawfully through a green light.

4. Never Give Way

Sometimes, through no fault of your own, you find yourself in a lane which is blocked by an obstacle.

You put on your indicator that you wish to turn right into the next lane. In many cities, the driver in the next lane will slow down and give you a break.

In Singapore, instead of giving you a break, the drivers in the next lane will accelerate in order to prevent you from filtering into the next lane.

Is this also a part of our kiasu syndrome? The mindset seems to be that we live in a highly competitive world and there is no place for kindness or courtesy. It is every man for himself.

5. Potong Jalan

Potong jalan, in Malay, means cutting queue. In colonial Singapore, the practice of potong jalan was common because there were many gangsters, thugs and members of the secret societies, and the police was weak.

Post-1959, the norm is every one queues up and no one is allowed to cut the queue. The exception is on our roads. It is very annoying to wait patiently to make a turn and to be confronted by cars which have cut the queue and insist on inserting themselves into your lane. The police should stamp out this bad practice which violates our sense of fair play and the rule of law.

6. Poor Parking

Some Singapore drivers have developed some bad habits when parking their cars. I have seen a car parked in the middle of two lots.

One day, at a car park near a market, I saw a well-dressed lady, driving an expensive car, parking her car in a handicap lot. I went over to her and politely told her to park her car at one of the other empty lots. She told me to mind my own business. I should have taken a photo of her car and put it on my Facebook page.

On another occasion, I had parked my car in the middle lot at a public carpark. When I returned, I found that another car was parked so close to my car that I couldn’t open my door. This is a classic example of selfish behaviour. The driver of the neighbouring car had given himself too much room to open his door and had given me no room to open mine.

After waiting fruitlessly, for some time, for the other driver to return, I decided to enter my car by passenger’s door and managed, with some difficulty, to get into the driver’s seat. The lesson learnt is that we should always park our cars in the middle of the lot.

7. Using the indicator

The seventh bad habit of the Singapore driver is his reluctance to use his indicator.

Very often, I am faced with the choice of joining a lane which is for cars turning right as well as for cars going straight or a lane for cars going straight only. There is a car at the head of the lane which could go both ways. Since he has not switched on his indicator to make a right turn, I assume that he is going straight. However, when the traffic light turns green, he turns on his indicator to make a right turn. You feel frustrated as you could have joined the next lane and wish that he had put on his indicator earlier. My plea to our drivers is to turn on their indicators early if they intend to make a right turn or a left turn. It is an act of courtesy to other drivers.

There are of course many good, considerate drivers on our roads. The above seven bad habits however are traits easily seen on our roads every day. I write this in hope that we can all reflect on our bad driving habits and correct them.

The Singapore driver is a speed fiend now, but he can learn to drive appropriately. He may be selfish and lack courtesy, kindness and civic mindedness today. But I hope he, or she, learns to give way to others stuck in lanes, makes a conscious effort to park considerately, signals early, and avoids cutting in.

Our driving manners reflect who we are as a people. Surely we can improve on the bad habits and in so doing, help create a more pleasant driving environment for all.

Care to read and discuss a book outside your curriculum this semester? Simply choose one of the titles offered by students of Tembusu College and register via Eventbrite (click on the link) by 11th September 2019, Sunday.

An email will be sent to all participants after 11th September to confirm their registration. The reading pod facilitator will contact participants via email to provide more details (starting date and venue).

Participants are responsible to purchase their own book; eBook is accepted. The first 5 sign-ups are eligible for the subsidy – you need only pay S$10 for the book of your choice. Participants will be contacted to submit a RFP form with original receipt attached to the college office for reimbursement of their purchase (e.g. book purchased at $15, college will reimburse $5). Subsequent sign-ups are welcome.