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Barely three months into her marriage this January, Hannah Yeoh Tseow Suan found herself contesting a seat in Malaysia’s 12th General Elections, which was held on 8 March.
The political tsunami that fateful day got Hannah elected as the Pakatan Rakyat representative for Subang Jaya, in Selangor, and thrust her into the media spotlight as a young, educated, energetic and capable woman whom everybody wants to know.
As part of a new breed of politicians, the 29-year-old believes serving her electorate is more important than being acknowledged as a Yang Berhormat. Hence, she and her party colleagues do not demand the VIP treatment and will have no part in being chauffeur-driven to events. In Yeoh’s case, her husband, Ramachandran Muniandy, also 29, drives her in their humble car. |
 Says Muniandy with a cheeky smile, “When I accompany Hannah to functions, I’m often told to drop off the Yang Berhormat, park at the back and wait till it is time to pick her up. “Since I’m Indian and Hannah is Chinese, many people assume I’m her driver, especially since Barisan Nasional elected representatives always turn up for functions chauffeur-driven in luxury cars.”
Hmm … so how did this couple meet? Well, it seems that divine intervention had a lot to do with it! Yeoh had left her Law practice after three years to embark on theological studies and a new career in event management, much to the disappointment of her father who had spent four years paying for her degree. At the same time, she served at City Church Kuala Lumpur, where she met her husband. Muniandy and Yeoh were youth leaders at their church. |
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“Over a period of one year, I had a recurring vision of a woman preaching at our church and just knew she would be my wife, even though I didn’t know it would be Hannah. In June 2007, my pastor went overseas and Hannah preached at the Sunday service. Half way through her sermon, I realised that she was the woman in my vision,” says Muniandy.
Muniandy said it was not love at first sight, but that “I felt an overwhelming urge to protect her”. Yeoh laughs, and interjects: “How can it be love? We hardly knew each other and came in contact only to discuss church matters.”
Strangely, in January 2007, while Yeoh was having a drink with friends at a mamak restaurant in Bangsar, someone from church told her that she would receive a marriage proposal by June that year. “I didn’t even have a boyfriend at the time and so I dismissed this ‘prophecy’,” says Yeoh. Muniandy did propose in June 2007 and soon after, Yeoh had a dream where she was told he is the one for her.
Final confirmation came when she found both their names mentioned in the Bible on the same page, where the Book of Ruth ends and Samuel 1 begins. Surprisingly, Yeoh and Muniandy had never even dated before their engagement. “When he put the engagement ring on my finger, I thought to myself that that was the first time he was holding my hand,” she said.
As a young couple, their marriage has been put to the test many times. For instance, three months into it, Yeoh was thick on the campaign trail. There were many difficult moments such as when people called her a ‘nobody’ and ‘inexperienced’ just because Yeoh refused to spice up her ceramah by making personal attacks against her opponent.
“That didn’t stop our opponents from spreading lies that Yeoh was pregnant, and could not be an effective leader as a new mother and bride. Coping with all the lies was stressful, but our faith in God and love for each other always pulled us through,” says Muniandy.
Things have not gotten easier after being elected either. Yeoh attends administrative meetings apart from meeting residents and investors, and holding anti-crime dialogues with the police.
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 “The hardest part is meeting the public. I feel their pain and I’m trying to help as best I can. It’s a slow process but we’re getting there,” she says.
Yeoh also takes a very firm stand again corruption. She is convinced that corruption is a terrible disease that ruins society. “Some people believe that bribing the traffic policeman is an acceptable form of corruption. But I’m saying all corruption is bad. I am very strict about this and everyone who deals with me, including donors, are told upfront that I will not return favours by misusing my office as an elected representative.”
Even journalists have caught on to her clean image, and now refer to Yeoh’s YB title as Yang Bersih. Yeoh has a strong following among youths and writes about her life as an elected representative on her blog, http://hannahyeoh.blogspot.com. |
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“My blog is the only place where the mainstream media cannot manipulate or censor what I say. All the words are mine. I get to share my thoughts and check my own soul as I relive events of the day,” she says.
Yeoh and Muniandy have yet to go on their honeymoon. She is kept busy serving her constituents, while he is a computer engineer by day and her comrade-in-arms after office hours. Even on weekends, Muniandy accompanies her to functions and meetings. On the Sunday when this interview was conducted, the couple had turned down dim sum breakfast with Yeoh’s family to participate in a gotong-royong activity with a residents’ association.
“We watch cartoons on DVD to unwind,” they say. Children have to be put on hold too for now. “The priority is to serve my constituents well. They trusted me enough to return me with a 14,000 vote majority. So no matter how difficult things get, I am determined to do my very best for as long as I am in office,” she says.The hardest part is meeting the public. I feel their pain and I’m trying to help as best I can.
So no matter how difficult things get, I am determined to do my very best for as long as
I am in office. |
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