“WHAT’S love got to do with it,” sang the late ‘Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll’ Tina Turner. “When love is just a second-hand emotion.”
She could very well have been singing about the many local brides who have tied the knot with illegal migrants in Malaysia.
This was seemingly the point being made by SejaFi (@FreeOrPartition) on X when he claimed that Bangladeshis were marrying Malay women for the extra benefits.
He came to the conclusion after doing his research with Bangladeshi employees at his factory.
Pernah tanya Bangla kilang pasal ni. Rata2 cari perempuan Melayu.
Aku ingat sebab diorang taste Nusantara, jadi aku cadang perempuan Indonesia. Diorang taknak. Sebab tak boleh tunggang untuk meniaga.
So yeah. They marry you not because of you. They marry you for benefit. https://t.co/I3vQOiTclx
— SejaFi 🇲🇾 | #FreeOrPartition 🇵🇸 (@sjfi_twider) March 14, 2025
Thinking they fancied ladies with Nusantara (Malay Archipelago) looks, he proposed that they search for Indonesian brides. But his suggestion was rejected because these workers could not then use the spouse’s name to get a business or trader’s license.
Hence, his less-than-romantic conclusions.
The poster was responding to posts touching on the same subject. One poster, CEO of Expose (@druglordfxdl), claimed that the normal modus operandi would be to open a business using the spouse’s name.
The so-called hubby would then employ his foreign national friends and remit all the profits to his country of origin before leaving the local spouse and kids in the lurch.
Modus operandi warga asing !
1. Kahwin dengan rakyat Malaysia.
2. Guna nama bini untuk start bisnes
3. Bukak bisnes dan upah kawan2 dia
4. Bila dah untung, dia hantar semua duit ke negara asal, buka bisnes dekat sana.
5. Anak bini tinggal je kat malaysia terumbang ambing.— CEO OF EXPOSE (@druglordfxdl) March 13, 2025
Successful and snazzy shops owned and run by foreign nationals were also highlighted by another social media influencer Kamaghul deghaman (@kamaghul).
The issue of local women marrying foreign nationals who are illegal migrant workers have been gaining traction for some time. The fact that each of the above social media posts had generated over 1M views each attest to this.
Delving further SejaFi observed that many Malay women – particularly those working in factories – were smitten by the Bangladeshi men who seemed a lot “smoother” in their courting rituals as compared to local men.
One commenter backed up the observation by contending that male Indonesian migrant workers behave in a similar manner, preferring to marry locals as it afforded them the privilege of residing in Malaysia which Iis deemed perfect for them.
Another claimed this was normal among Bangladeshi and Indonesian workers even though many of them already had wives and children in their respective homelands.
However, one netizen cheekily dismissed these posts as “male jealousy”, insinuating that local men are just bitter that they are losing out to these foreign Casanovas.
One chided the poster for making an issue out of this as many Malay men also marry Indonesian women who work in factories.
It was also pointed out that this was a case of “willing seller-willing buyer” scenario. There were benefits to both parties.
These posts highlight a few pertinent issues. Firstly, with the high number of foreign workers in the country, this phenomenon was to be expected.
Secondly, the multiple posts also underline that many locals are increasingly worried and unhappy that this is legalising the presence of many foreigners in the country.
As they say, love is blind and there is not much that Malay men can do if their women folks favour marrying migrant workers. It is doubtful that highlighting cases of abandoned local spouses will change the scenario.
However, as one netizen ominously proclaimed, this could lead to the nation being overrun by foreigners one day. – March 17, 2025
