Call Me Encik

Imagine being at a cocktail party, filled with who's who, (who are mostly "who" TF is that guy?), and while talking cock tales with a corporate "bigwig" (because he's an assistant manager at the finance department who wears a hairpiece), the waiter, a young engineer from Bangladesh comes up to you and says "more prawn cocktail Dato?" You look at him with disdain, your face turning red with anger, clenching your fist you tell him, "Please call me Encik!"

Well, given the number of Datuks around, that scenario is quite likely. Everyone assumes everyone is one. Every Timbalan KSU or Deputy DG expects one, all SACs and Brigadears are one, DOs are Datuks, CEOs, regardless of the size of the company is almost certainly a Dato'. Professors are a new addition to the fraternity and now, celebrities and sportsmen. Dato' Siti, Dato' Kathy, Dato' David (Arumugam), Dato' Jalal, Datuk Yusof Haslam, Dato' CW Lee, Dato Misbun, Dato Nicol and even Dato' Shah Rukh! Sultan Kahlil of Melaka justified SRK's award, saying he promoted Melaka to the world through his movies. I pray we won't see a Dato' Awie, ever!

Back in the 1980s, our DPM and Finance Minister were mere Enciks, even the Education Minister back then was just a 'saudara' ...

What is a Dato'ship? My take on the title is that it should serve as a reward for an achievement. I have no problems with government servants or corporate bigwigs or singers or even politicians getting awarded but I feel it should be given to the most deserving, upon retirement, i.e. those who has served the country/state (as opposed to just about to serve, i.e. first term assemblymen or newly appointed KSU), or those who has served the royal family or those who have achieved something out of the ordinary.

Yes, Nicol David deserves the title but couldn't they wait at least until she retires? That Azhar guy who sailed around the world got a Datoship but those two (Malaysian of Indian descent) who reached the top of Everest didn't. Why the double standards? What about the guy who swam across the English Channel? He did it faster than the earlier guy but the earlier guy got a Dato'ship.

And by the way, I met Sean and Catherine the other night at a cocktail party, they are asking when is their Datoship coming? After all, they did promote Malaysia through their movie Entrapment.