IN light of the Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM) name change polemic, veteran journalist and blogger Datuk A. Kadir Jasin has mooted the idea of reverting to identifying Peninsular Malaysia as per its constitutional name which is Federation of Malaya or simply Malaya.
He argued that the term Peninsular Malaysia itself is incorrect as it refers to a geographical unit while Sarawak and Sabah are referred to according to their constitutional and political identity.
“If we refer to Malaya as Peninsular Malaysia, then we’ve to refer to Sarawak and Sabah according to their geography as part of an island with both regions becoming Insular Malaysia or Malaysian Borneo,” he justified on his Facebook page.
Editor’s Note: Many Sabahans and Sarawakians are already identifying Peninsular Malaysia as “Malaya”.
“The Wikipedia entry states: ‘In 1957, the Federation of Malaya achieved its independence. In 1963, Malaya merged with Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore to form Malaysia. In 1965, Singapore was forced to be expelled from the Federation and became an independent country.’
“So, let’s stop using the geographical name Peninsular Malaysia and revert to the constitutional name of the Federation of Malaya or simply Malaya.”
Added the national journalism laureate: “If we don’t use the name Federation of Malaya or Malaya, people will forget it over time. When people forget, that’s when people who hate the name will have the opportunity to eliminate it for good.”
Earlier Kadir claimed that he has on numerous occasions highlighted the tendency to test the limits of freedom and tolerance since the establishment of the Madani government, the most recent being the proposal to change the name of national roadway operator Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM).
“This is not surprising because Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has since time immemorial presented himself as an open-minded, reformist and tolerant person,” observed the former group editor-in-chief of mainstream New Straits Tines (NST).
“Many matters are being tested from political issues to regional autonomy, religion, race, monarchy, economy, LGBT, flag, pig farming and many more.”
Commenting on the call by former Malay Mail sports editor Datuk Johnson Fernandez for KTM to embark on a name change to reflect innovation and modernisation, Kadr said he agreed with the management of Keretapi Tanah Melayu Bhd (KTMB) to reject the proposal.
In a letter published by the Free Malaysia Today news portal, Fernandez has proposed that the name be changed on the grounds that “keretapi” refers to old trains that are no longer in use and that the country itself is no longer known as Tanah Melayu.
“With permission, I would like to suggest that KTMB be branded only as KTM. All KTMB trains and assets are to be written with the letters KTM. The word “Berhad” is only used as a corporate name,” suggested Kadir.
“Do it like British Rail. The company’s name is British Railway but its business branding is British Rail. Or like Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI) which corporate name is PT Kereta Api Indonesia.
“At the same time, I wish (also) to propose that the use of the name Tanah Melayu (literally, land of the Malays) be restored to the widest extent.” – April 26, 2025
