AS PER usual, anything and everything in Malaysia seem to be connected to race.
In a post on the X platform, Abang aji (@apanakdikato) had somehow equated employer attitudes towards statutory payments – Employee Provident Fund (EPF) and Social Security Organisation (SOCSO) – to race.
He was alluding to the case of home-grown honey-based bubble tea chain Bubblebee Sdn Bhd which was fined RM17,500 by the magistrate’s court on Nov 11 while sharing a video featuring one of its directors – comedian Shuib Sepahtu a.k.a. Shahmira Muhamad, 40 – readily living up to business challenges following the fine incident.
This was when the poster drew a comparison between Malay and Chinese businessmen whereby the latter would always look after employees first before taking any profits for himself.
Beza melayu dgn cina
Melayu utamakan diri sendiri dulu, dh tgl kerak baru bg dkt pekerja
Cina utamakan pekerja, dh tgl kerak br dia amik utk diri sendiri.
Smlm br je jmp kwn cina, umur 42.. ada staf 4 org. Bg gaji 2k-3k & bonus 3 bln. Dia plk tk amik gaji. pic.twitter.com/TWwoM0ozZU
— Abang aji🪵 (@apanakdikato) November 14, 2024
Citing a personal friend as an example, Abang aji shared that a 42-year-old Chinese businessman friend who has four staff would pay salaries ranging from RM2,000 to RM3,000 to his staff on top of a three-month bonus while “not taking a salary for himself”.
However, the poster’s observations were quickly shot down by netizens who pointed out that Shuib’s partner in crime was Chinese.
It was reported that Magistrate Ameera Mastura Khamis made a ruling to fine Bubblebee which was represented by its two directors, Shuib and Koh Choon Guan, 33, after the duo admitted to all the charges.
Quite a few found Abang aji’s generalisations to be way off the mark. In fact, the poster was accused for “sucking up to the Chinese”.
Some used ‘generous’ influencer-cum-entrepreneur Khairul Aming as the perfect riposte to the poster’s claims.
More than one commenter pointed out that this has nothing to do with race but rather an individual’s moral compass. Those who lack one will act in a manner that is detrimental to their staff irrespective of race.
As rightly pointed out by various netizens, this generalisation is way off the mark as exemplified by Bubblebee case itself where the two directors are Malay and Chinese.
Bad characters are everywhere, and yes, they come in all shapes, sizes and races. – Nov 19, 2024
Main image credit: shuibsepahtu/Instagram
