The Ambassador to the USA

My article on our ambassador designate to America drew out several comments. By and large, the comments zoomed in to the question of JJ's character. The incident at a 5 star hotel in Kuala Lumpur was treated as the defining event that forever coloured JJ. There are also some comments which send down UMNO for being devoid of leadership stuff, if a person like JJ is treated respectably.

I recognise these comments. They were not unexpected though because they either came from those who are genuinely opposed to UMNO or from the faction within UMNO who longed for the Old Order. The former deserves respect, the latter deserves scant attention.

I will not trivialise the comments that were sent following my article on JJ. On most of them I agree. I have said what most commentators found troubling. JJ has some questionable business deals, most of which however, I believed were envious add-ons. JJ was a successful businessman. He bought out an unknown manufacturer of switchgears and later listed EPE power. He is after all an electrical engineer. He then went on to expand into other businesses. Therefore, there are strong reasons to believe that a man with his talents, intelligence and networking capabilities could honestly succeed.

Hence, the insinuations that JJ secured prosperity on the back of questionable business dealings may not be entirely true. Those were statements having the nature of insinuations which were mostly unsupported by facts. Their 'truth' value was established through innuendos and corridor whispers. Fortunately, the truth is not established ala loud shouts on a trading floor. These to me, in the famous words of a judge, are not relevant. I am not going to begrudge him for his penchant smoking cigars or dressing in haute couture just because I couldn't afford to or if I can afford it, wouldn't want to.

Let us turn to one particular issue that never ceased to be brought up. The one incident at a leading hotel is treated the tipping point defining JJ's character trait. Although I was also among those who lampooned him over this and shared many good laughs with friends, I do not think they were sustainable. Of course we needled him for that particular event. We punished him for that. But I find it difficult to accept this questionable incident as one that goes to the root of his character making JJ a flawed character ab initio. Do we now condemn his as a perpetual amorous person?

Yet despite this incident, the PM was willing to take diplomatic brickbats and insist on appointing JJ as ambassador suggests the measure of confidence in the man. On his abilities and diligence there are no doubts. To persist in spite of the negative character perception suggests PM thinks the incident was all politics.

From the date of the event until now, there hasn't been a case of sexual harassment brought before the courts against JJ. We can humour ourselves with storied versions as to the reasons why no such a case was placed before the court. Just as the incident gave us the fodder for many a comic relief, why no case of sexual harassment was brought before the courts, will remain matters of conjecture. But for us who insist that JJ was a culprit, no amount of excuses or defences will change our settled opinions of him. On such opinion came from an anonymous commentator who has the smell of rancid kari curry about him.

But suppose we look at the whole mess from a different angle. Granted some untoward incident did occur but not in the manner as was reported in the papers. What if, what actually took place was different from what was reported? The funny thing was, that incident was swiftly reported in the press. Was it a coincident that the press people were there at that time or were tailing JJ?

Just suppose further, unseen hands were at play at the highest reaches of the media world, to knock off Najib's supporters one by one. Begin with JJ first. That JJ is today continuously maligned suggests that there are forces within UMNO itself and outside UMNO, though operating independently, which are worried about Najib-led UMNO resurgence. Why not continue to character assassinate one of his closest confidantes?

After the previous PM lost 5 states to the opposition mainly through his uninspiring leadership, there were ground movements to request him to own up and resign immediately. The ringleader was assumed to be JJ. JJ was to suffer the first consequence. Despite winning the Rompin parliamentary seat, he wasn't included in the cabinet. The former PM would have wished he had stuck to his earlier feel not to put up JJ as candidate. Excluding JJ from the cabinet was therefore a small measure of revenge and consolation.

But JJ is also seen as Najib's chief enforcer, lieutenant and Mr. Fix it, all rolled into one. Why not engineer some incident that will not only incapacitate JJ but also strike fear in Najib's heart? Now, everyone who has come into contact with JJ knows at social events, he can be garrulous and boisterous. Why not exploit these facets of JJ's behaviour into some political capital? At this particular leading hotel in KL, JJ was a familiar face. I have already told readers of JJ's hail fellow well met style of striking friendship. Almost every worker knows JJ. By the way, JJ emits this kind of friendliness not only in this particular place. If one were to encounter him at Nikko Hotel for example, the same style of friendship can be seen.

Maybe there were touching and slapping here and there but not to the extent of suggesting sexual overtures. They became looked as such only when the media people who were obviously tailing JJ there spin that kind of salacious behaviour. It became a scandalised story that not only damaged JJ's character but did not fail to send a coded message to Najib, that if we can embarrass your main man, we can also do that to you.

This whole scenario has to be revisited as it is troubling not only to fair minded Malaysian citizens; it is also disturbing to the ambassador designate. We have lynched him in the press. Now it is incumbent upon us to clear him.

I said he was a role model- back then. Perhaps the commentator who strongly disputed the treatment of JJ as a role model back then, underestimated the background of Malay students in rural Pekan and not so urban Kuantan in the 1960's and 1970's. The appearance of a really bright student in our midst back then, was treated as an inspiration for most of us. I suspect the same reverence is never felt in advanced states where bright students are a rule rather than exception.

JJ has got his share of human foibles. I accept that these shortcomings will make people dealing with him to be circumspect.

So despite this, why do I think good of him still? Perhaps because I feel it justifiable to give him the benefit if the doubt just as I am willing to give Anwar Ibrahim the same. We are herded into thinking ill of him because he is so inviting for that. Perhaps also because as he comes from the same place as I do, there is a sense of shared pride.