I am a middle-class overseas educated Malaysian of Chinese origin who was fortunate enough to come from a well-off family, so I never had to worry a great deal about scholarships and loans. However, I am still not blinded by my secure position so that I can ignore the political developments in our country.

I have always been a patriot in the true sense - no, I did not wave flags and heap praises on Malaysia wherever I went, but I love my country to the extent that I want to see it grow economically, socially and politically. Although I am proud of the physical developments that we see, I feel that socially, we are still backward.

Apart from the much-talked-about issues regarding freedom of speech, the judiciary, cronyism etc., other social aspects of Malaysia also need to be addressed. I am talking about the way we treat our foreign workers, the fact that people jump queues without fear of being reprimanded, the inherent inability of Malaysians to keep public toilets clean, men who bash up middle-aged women over some minor traffic transgression, racial polarisation ... the list continues.

However, the issue I wish to address is the more current topic, which is the whole Suqiu/Umno Youth/Mahathir stand-off. At the last general election, the Chinese voting population played a great part in getting the BN back in power, partly this was due to the BN's scare tactics. But this not the only cause; the Chinese intelligence is not as limited as that.

Instead, I feel that the majority of Chinese voters were apathetic over social issues such as freedom of speech and transparency of governance. What concerned us the most was our economic well-being. Mahathir's policies, however short-sighted and controversial they may be, had the desired effect of temporarily halting the downturn, long enough at least to keep him in power for another five years. So, as the cliche goes, better the devil you know.

Well, the latest developments have shown that Mahathir is not as predictable as we had hoped. Just ask the poor Suqiu members, which I believe are made up of staunch BN supporters. Mahathir's response to their plight when they were under attack was to throw them to the hungry lions, in these case Umno Youth, in order to strengthen his own position, so that he can come out of it looking like the glorious protector of Malay rights.

My only wish is that this whole episode will serve as a good lesson to us Chinese voters. Sometimes, it is better to take a calculated risk for the good of all, rather than go for the so-called "safe" option for our own benefit. As citizens of this great nation, we should seek for greater long-term goals rather than just short-term economic wealth.

If the letters written to malaysiakini provide a good indicator, than Mahathir has clearly underestimated the intelligence of Bangsa Malaysia (all Malaysians regardless of race and religion).

And to Abdul Aziz Sheikh Fadzir, I have this to say: You are a traitor to all Malaysians and, even more so, to your immigrant forefathers.