August 7, 2012
Manoharan Apologises to Dato Lee Chong Wei for Disparaging Comments
by Hazlan Zakaria @www.malaysiakini.com
Kota Alam Shah assemblyperson M Manoharan has apologised for his tweets which many see as disparaging national shuttler Lee Chong Wei after his loss to China’s Lin Dan in Sunday night’s men’s singles badminton finals of the London Olympics.
“I deeply regret the comments I have made and tender my heartfelt apologies to Dato’ Lee Chong Wei and his family. I sincerely hope my apology will be accepted,” Manoharan says in two tweets on microblog site Twitter.
His faux pas began soon after Lin Dan clinched the gold, when he tweeted: 
“Lin Dan wins. He played better than Lee Chong AWAY”. Manoharan then followed through by stating that Lin Dan had played better than his Malaysian counterpart and that anyone who thought otherwise was “talking nonsense”.
Digging in further, he then berated the government for promising monetary rewards for athletes and snidely said that the cash prize should now be extended to the “poor boy Lin Dan”.
The DAP representative’s tweets earned him brickbats from netizens, political leaders from both sides of the aisle and Malaysiakini commentators.
His apology came soon after DAP Secretary- General Lim Guan Eng chastised Manoharan for his “totally insensitive” remarks regarding Lee’s defeat at the hands of Lin Dan.
Lim said Manoharan does not represent the party and that he is “totally alone” in his views, but he declined comment on whether the party would take any action against the assemblyperson.
Lim was responding to BN’s call for the DAP to take a clear stand on whether it agreed with Manoharan’s remarks.
Despite Manoharan’s vitriol, Chong Wei was given a hero’s welcome upon his arrival in the country today. Lim also announced that Penang would present an award of RM100,000 to the shuttler for his efforts in representing the country and winning the silver medal for badminton in the Olympics.
Din Merican: the Malaysian DJ Blogger 
The bugger has apologised. To err is human, to forgive is divine.
“Kota Alam Shah assemblyperson M Manoharan has apologised for his tweets which many see as disparaging …”
Never mind Mano’s tweets. He is a twit’s twit.
“Lim also announced that Penang would present an award of RM100,000 to the shuttler for his efforts.”
Wow ! I can do with some of that to spread around a little to all the Ashley Alexdra Dupres of the world.
Sigh………Why must everything needs to be politicised in Malaysia. The guy has apologised to Mr.Lee & his family – just accept his error. Mr.Lee has done & given his best but Lin Dan proved to be better. That’s all. DAP & BN should just relax and accept the situation.
For you guys who think there is invasion of privacy with twittering and that there is a proprietary interest that needs protecting, forget it. It is your gift to the rest of the world. You can be searched and seized and prosecuted as a result.
I think if Mano is sincere, he should make an effort to apologise personally. You disparagh a person at a time when he need most is encouragement and later tweet to say sorry, and from a state assemblymen. As I said, if you are sincere you should be humble enough to apologise personally.
no need to politise this issue since it is his private opinion, freedom of speeech!
drinking while driving the keyboard could cause hurt to someone!
This is the new culture in Malaysia. Say and do what you like and when there is outrage apologise and ask for “for-gip-net” like the people of the country to the north of us.
That’s right, reeper.
Malaysians at home have long lost their free speech right. They cannot remember how it feels like to exercise their right. So much so when one of their own spoke their mind on an issue and don’t share the same thought they fall over each other in the attempt to crucify the guy. And I’m not talking about Mano.
I’ve cross paths with one or two of these Malayan Tamil and Singh shithead characters in the police force and medical field.. So full of themselves , arrogance seems to be their virtue.. Shitheads as they are , these are individuals nevertheless and do not represent the whole community of jolly good toddy drinkers nor stinky hole craving Bendovers…
Actually Mano spoiled brat just tweet out his opinion….whether harsh or too sensitive…we should be fair to this wacko …just to voice out his thoughts…and not all PR members are naive like this Hindustan…He may be a good politician…and might be not a good sportman and just politise every issue inhand and might be the brainless one…if PR to win PRU 13…Mano is not relevan to represent the public…because he is too cool to understand others saddness…if he is jiwa rakyat…better he personally approached Datuk Lee and explains his dumbless tweet….
Stop the racial slurs danildaud. You can do better than that !
Mano-a-Mano. Why don’t you Mano take on Chong Wei and see if you can beat him on the court.Twitter has caused many people to let their feelings go unchecked. Think before twitting you twit.
Apologizing is easy, just 2 words “I apologize” but it doesn’t mean a shit.
The first 5 seconds of your thought process reflects your real thinking. Thus when you get the itch to twit, stop and wait. Apologizing after being a twit is so shallow.
Well, a gold is not silver; and i don’t believe in alchemy without the benefit of high energy nuclear transmutations. Although i sympathize and empathize with LCW, he couldn’t deliver – and i really didn’t have the high expectations from him. At this level of competition, mental strength is all that differentiates a winner from a loser. Luck? Yeah, that too. Get real, LD ain’t a walk in the park and he wears a strange ‘totem’ on his sleeve. So shoot me!
The young have visions, but the old just dream dreams.. At the rate we are going and the direction headed, i’d be very dead and gone before Malaysia can achieve any Olympian gold.
Mano for all his bumbling ways and foot-shooting perhaps shouldn’t tweet. His fingers probably type faster than his addled politician brain. The EQ of a horse.
There is a fine line that separates a twit from a twat. Mano is neither?
Spot on, orang malaya, Apologizing is easy, just 2 words “I apologize” but it doesn’t mean a shit. Why pick a fight which you don’t need it. Isn’t GE13 round the corner. He should be fighting for his popularity instead. Now do you still want an adun of this caliber to be your representative? Samy’s son can do better.
Orang malaya, the game just ended. The result is, 1st game score at 5-0, this mano guy collapsed and was rush to hospital. This mano guy is okay and It ended with LCW saying I’m sorry.
Sheeesh … so Mano had an opinion and shared it openly. I don’t see anything wrong or insensitive about his tweets. So what is this brouhaha all about?
Suddenly a badminton player is put on a pedestal and beyond criticism . So what if there are those who think Lin dan is a better player !! Does it mean they are less patriotic? Its just an olympic sporting event damn it . Sportsman, professionals, working class all plod along largely for themselves or family wellbeing.The country and nation thing is just hype !!
This mano idiot deserves to be given the olympic gold medal for stupidity.
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I disagree, this arrogant s.o.b should be thrown out of DAP. If he stands again in GE-13, voters will make he loses. This is the second time the man has embarrassed the party.I watched the badminton finals on tv and Chong Wei did well. At one stage, Lin Dan appeared tensed because he was heading for defeat. The Chinese No.1 was lucky due to some unforced errors by the Malaysian champion. Congrats, LCW for bring home a Silver medal for our country.–Din Merican
Agreed with Dato…Mano is s.ob and the voters will vote him out, no doubt just a tweet and shown how stupid he is to forsee others agony….and politise every dammed issue and fail to upkeep his maturity and fail to shown to the public that he is repectable politician. If he can hurt others just like sup..sup..sui…so the public will tui him out from this PRU 13…no doubts democracy allows people to tweet as they wish….but dont forget his appointed position are not permissible…and he must learned to understands others feeling and dont behave like the ham ka chang parazzi dogs……..
Well, according to Mano the elusive gold will be won under Pakatan??…perhaps that’s true if Pakatan can bribe LDan half the prize money to lose the match??
hardly agreed with you…Mr Barry…PR dont have that large affordable sum to bought LinDan…their manifesto for PRU 13 also not grand like N..jab is spending now….support by the BANK NEGARA….PR need funds for Saudara Rafizi 2 millions kes….maybe later if PR holds Putrajaya….must be wet dreams if their naive politicians behave like Manos..
Look guys, there is a aphorism by Carl Jung; “What you resist, persist.”
So there is a deep psychological insight in Mano’s seeming FUBAR, even though he doesn’t seem to know it, but it’s an empty promise – because we are Losers.
I think with all the malodorous stuff spewing on both sides of the political divide, we need to see this. I for one will choose the ‘entity’ who exudes honest positivism – not of empty promises, populist knee-jerks and impotent rhetoric. My discernment will be based on the lesser of evils. Comprendo?