From Gurney Drive to Chin Peng Drive

Penang UMNO must be desperately clutching at straws just to stay relevant. Any straw will do. That would explain why they needed to create a firestorm now and then in DAP-governed Penang.

 

Penang UMNO Youth chief Rafizal Abdul Rahim (left) had claimed on Monday that he had heard from the Chief Minister’s office that Gurney Drive, which was named after former colonial British administrator Henry Lovell Goldsworthy Gurney, would be renamed Chin Peng Drive. This would become effective from January 01, 2015. Supposedly.

 

Gurney Drive (or Persiaran Gurney, as it is referred to in Malay) has been described in tourist brochures as a destination that is “a deluge of hawker delights and exciting restaurants that come alive at night time, giving the unique experience of dining by the sea”. (Hmmm, I shall keep my comments about Gurney Drive to myself).

 

And for those who are ignorant about local history, the late Chin Peng was once the secretary-general of the outlawed Communist Party of Malaya. And of course, in Malaysia, communism is taboo because the government continue to be haunted by the past.

 

CM Lim Guan Eng has since rubbished Rafizal’s allegations.

 

The latter has a fertile imagination. I can't believe he believes in something as preposterous as this.

 

Yesterday, I was at the Pesona Toastmasters meeting where I delivered CC speech #7. I was evaluated by Andrew Tan who also doubled up as the General Evaluator. I was fortunate to be able to speak because one Pesona Toastmaster had to suddenly go outstation for work and the club VPE, Heng Jing Yi was kind enough to offer me that one speaking slot. 

I also doubled up as the Table Topics Evaluator. Overall, it was a good meeting and I would score it a 7 over 10.

 

 

And later, I was at No. 57, The Boulevard at MidValley to attend the MAICSA Toastmasters meeting. I was the Evaluator for an Advanced speaker. It was another enjoyable meeting and I would score it a 7 over 10.