Malaysians link Tamil Nadu politics with local booze policy in a funny way

INDIA/MALAYSIA: When the newly minted Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Chandrasekaran Joseph Vijay, announced a crackdown on alcohol access by ordering the closure of 717 TASMAC liquor outlets situated near schools, temples, and bus stands, locals in Malaysia quickly joked about it.

However, they were not targeting the popular Chief Minister in India. They were targeting the allies of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim in his Madani government.

A post on Facebook by influencer Tanaka Mustafa on the anti-alcohol policies in Tamil Nadu raised some eyebrows.

“Vijay can just shut down liquor factories in Tamil Nadu, because there’s no Diyepi there,” he said. Users commenting on the post quickly linked the word Diyepi to the Democratic Action Party (DAP).

One Facebook user said that with DAP, alcohol is also accessed in schools. The comment is probably related to events organised in Chinese schools where alcohol is said to be flowing. These are also said to be part of fundraising events at such schools.

Also, some exceptions allow school boards to continue renting out halls for dinners and fundraisers, which are ‘crucial’ for generating income.

Another said, “Here, DAP and (youth wings) can’t live without alcohol. They will die without it.”

The victory of the superstar actor in Tamil cinema also gave ammunition to local social media users to comment on Malaysia’s politics after Anwar congratulated the latter.

On May 12, Anwar posted a message to celebrate Vijay’s victory.

He called Vijay ‘friend’, adding that for many years, his adoring fans watched him “defeat corrupt politicians and assorted villains within three hours, usually after a short interval.”

Some X users were not happy with the message.

“Dear @anwaribrahim, please ban hero worshipping in Malaysia and stop dumping rubbish movies onto us without properly censoring it. Vijay has been promoting vulgarity in his movies for his whole career,” one posted.

One user hit hard in the comments, saying there is a need for a Malaysian ‘Joseph Vijay’ to win in the next general elections in Malaysia. The aim is to see the ‘new’ leader in Malaysia keep the promises and not just talk and betray the people.

“Malaysians are also looking for our ‘Joseph Vijay’ in GE16 who can live up to our hopes for a new generation leader to reset our governance against racial and money politics, one with guts to walk the talk and not just talk and betray the trust of the people.”

Many users on social media are constantly attacking Anwar for promoting ‘reforms’ for decades, but only to stay away from the reform agenda once he took power.

Another user said they want to see Anwar in the next elections, perhaps not to vote for him, for they say temples are being targeted in Malaysia.

“Sir, you know what equality is? We supported you! But what are u doing? Disgracing us but destroying our temples. See u in the next election!”