MAHATHIR IS DEFINITELY WRONG ON THE ‘FOUNDING’ OF SINGAPORE…

By Mansor Puteh

Dr Mahathir Mohammad said it was the Temenggung of Johor and not Sultan Ali, who had signed off the island to the British that had allowed it to become a republic that it is today. It is far from the truth.

He was responding to the comments which the Sultan of Johor, Sultan Ibrahim had said about him and his comments on Forest City that is being jointly developed by some Chinese concerns.

But the area that will be developed is not in Johor proper, but off-shore on land that will be reclaimed, which Mahathir has said would hold seven hundred thousand people mostly those from China.

And this, to Mahathir, amounts to surrendering the sovereignty of the state of Johor to the Chinese of China.

Unfortunately, what Mahathir has said was culled from reports from Bloomberg, and not from official sources, so his statements could implicate himself as well as the international news agency.

As for Mahathir’s comments on how he had alleged that it was the Temenggung of Johor who had caused the island of Singapore to be surrendered to the British and not Sultan Ali, one can surmise that he did not do an adequate investigation on this aspect of the history of Johor and the so-called founding of Singapore by Stamford Raffles on 31 January, 1818.

Mahathir, to his disadvantage, did not say the Temenggug’s full name which is Temenggung Abdul Rahman and Sultan Ali’s full name which is Sultan Ali Iskandar.

This may be proof that Dr Mahathir Mohammad does not know everything and not everything he says is right or the truth.

I wish to correct Mahathir who says it was Sultan Ali who refused to sign away the island of Singapore to the British which prompted the Temenggong of Johor to agree to do it, thus causing Singapore to be an independent and also now a developed country thus allowing Johor to lose the island.

How could he have made such a glaring mistake?

Unfortunately, no one had come up to correct him on this, simply because not many know the exact history of the so-called founding of Singapore by Thomas Stamford Raffles.

But again, it was not a country for the British that Raffles had come to Singapore to found but to for them to be allowed to establish a mere ‘trading post’, with no intention of turning the island into a British colony, let alone a new country.

I have written a historical novel called ‘Hussain and the story of an island…’ which is on this episode so I know just a bit more on the matter and can even teach Mahathir on how historically and factually incorrect his statement was.  

Sultan Ali as mentioned by Mahathir was Sultan Ali Iskandar, was the son of Sultan Hussain Shah (Raja Hussain Shah a.k.a. Tengku Long) that Stamford Raffles had cajoled and encouraged to leave his hiding place so he could be installed the first Sultan of Singapura (sic) on the Padang in Singapura on the 31 January, 1819 with due recognition as the sovereign head of the new country.

Sultan Ali Iskandar was not even born in that year.

‘Let it be it known to all men that the governor-general of India Lord Hastings has appointed his highness Raja Hussain Shah to be first Sultan of Singapore and all the territories comprised in it, with the title of Sultan Hussain Muazzam Shah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Mahmud on this day of the Thirty-first day of January, in the year of 1819,’ read the English officer.

Unfortunately, when Raffles left Singapura, he was succeeded by William Farquhar did not treat him well thus causing Sultan Hussain to sulk (merajuk).

And on 5 June, 1834, he and his family fled Singapore on the ship ‘Julia’ belonging to the Sultan of Kedah, and arrived in Melaka five days later on 11 June, to live in exile for the second time in his life.

Sultan Hussain did not stay in Melaka long because he soon died on 5 September, 1835 at the age of fifty-eight years and waa succeeded by his eldest son, Tengku Ali Iskandar who was only fifteen.

Unfortunately, the British did not recognize Sultan Hussain's successor, as an evil strategy,and in due course Singapore was colonized by the British.

And he left behind his four wives, Cik Wok binti Cik Sulaiman Chabang, Tengku Perbu binti Tengku Mamat, Che Puan Engku Bulang binti Engku Muda Ahmad and Wan Aishah or Engku Daeng Aishah binti Tun Koris.

Therefore, Singapore Island was not given by Sultan Hussain Shah or the Temenggung Abdul Rahman to the British but Johor was cheated by the British to part with it, and in due course brought in people from China do render the Melayu population, the minority.

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It would be interesting if a film on this episode is produced and shown worldwide so many people will know the tragedy that had befallen Sultan Hussain Shah and how he and the Melayu were cheated by the British who conned them into parting with their land, which caused the establishment of a small stamp-sized country in Southeast Asia otherwise known as the Nusantara Melayu or Melayu World.

And why not? I has a lot of elements that not many films that had been produced even by Hollywood, with a theme which is still relevant today. And it can be a world hit, if it done well and marketed properly.

It is just unfortunate that the film producers and directors and actors are not familiar with the colorful history of the so-called founding of Singapore to realize its potential.

Maybe somebody would realize it soon, and do something about it.

We can’t expect those in Hollywood or even England to take the initiative to produce such a film, and chances are for any Malaysian producer to be brave enough to want to do it are bleak as most of them are not aware of the episode.