Moral purity and nasi kandar By Andrew Sia

Malaysiakini : COMMENT | Another food fight? No, not between Malaysia and Singapore again.

This time it’s the claim that nasi kandar with pork is “an insult” to the industry and can cause public “confusion”, according to Presma (the Malaysian Muslim Restaurant Owners’ Association).

The argument is that nasi kandar is keenly associated with Indian Muslims and should thus not be tainted by anything porky.

It is baffling how anybody can be “confused” by an Instagram promotion that clearly says “pork nasi kandar” where the taste is declared to be “pork-fection”.

ScarletPuma5866 : These Pesma fellow are so evil that they think they can use religion to prevent NM from selling anything with nasi kandar name, thus they will get all nasi kandar business without any competition from NMs. So naive, so stupid, so immature. All NMs must ignore them and proceed to sell whatever we like.

Budak Kampung Madani : Blame local politicians for the PR stunts that insult the intelligence of the Malay community.. they share equal blame & responsibility for driving a wedge between the Malay Muslims and the rest of the ethic groups. Just take a look across the sea at our Sabah and Sarawak friends - no such racial nonsense there.

Malays there eat at the same table with Chinese when pork or liquor is served. No issue. Malaysia is fast becoming a laughing stock for the rest of the world, and a nation on the fast-track to religious extremism. Very sad. We had so much potential but we squandered it all away with infighting and racial scare mongering.

Krabian : Anything Islam and Muslim, all those religious bigots will not hesitate to jump onto the bandwagon to have their version of their faith. They still think stupidity is ingenuity.

Man on the Silver Mountain : I am laughing at the claim by Presma. Muslims confused at the word ‘babi’? That’s a Malay word, the last I heard. And yes, I am a Malay speaker, so I have not heard when the word should change its meaning. Babi is still pig.

Now, for the non-Malay speaking, perhaps English, Chinese or Tamil, perhaps the proprietors should use dual/triple/quadruple language on the word ‘babi’. Make no mistake – this is pure business consideration. Our mamak community want to copyright on the word ‘Nasi Kandar’, so as to keep the business for themselves.

This is Malaysian style – turn everything into race and religion if you want to succeed. LOL. P/S. Credit to the Malay satay sellers. They don't mind that there are pork satay. LOL.

Koel : Not sure what Presma intentions were, but this claiming ownership of food is the most pointless, narrow minded and ignorant pursuit of petty folks. Food is part of culture. A stable culture is also one that is dynamic, ever growing and adapting.

Where do the origins of rice and curry dishes begin, Presma? Use your brains lah. In Malaysia, these dishes were adapted to the local tastes and for a segment of the Indian population to distinguish themselves from other segments. So you want to start making claims, let's start with some acknowledgements.

But most of all, dont try and kill honest businesses of people just trying to make a living. They have families and needs. Destroying their livelihoods for claiming food ownership is a greater sin, right? Focus on your own food hygiene and pricing in your shops, if you want to focus on something.

Me : Most mamak toilets are seriously lacking in hygiene, in their outlets!!

Read it all here.....