Fiona Wan, who has been working in the UK for the past 10 years, said she believes that professionals moving home may be “a slow trickle at first”, but if the new government shows consistency, there will be “a large wave of returning professionals” in the next five years.
TWO days after the 14th general election, Shamini Raja booked a flight from Australia back to Penang.
“I wasn’t planning on going back until next year, but after this historic moment, I couldn’t wait to see my family and friends, to just be with fellow Malaysians,” said the 56-year-old property consultant, who has lived in Perth for more than 20 years.
“I can’t wait to balik kampung, to celebrate.”
The wave of excitement that swept the nation following the fall of the Barisan Nasional government after 60 years of rule sent ripples across the globe as the Malaysian diaspora watched on with amazement and pride.
For many overseas Malaysians like Shamini, the results of GE14 invoked a surge of pride and triggered a longing to return, even if it was for just a short trip.
But for some, the desire to be a part of the new Malaysian narrative goes beyond a short holiday.
Despite having lived and worked outside Malaysia for 12 years, moving from Japan to the UK and, finally, San Francisco in the US, Alden Yap has always consciously “stayed out, but also stayed close”.
The capital projects manager said despite enjoying the experience and exposure that his work abroad has provided him, his heart always desired to go home.
On two occasions, he almost made the move – once to join a government-linked company, and the other after being head-hunted by a private corporation.
“Needless to say, I did not make it back. It was not the climate, culture or compensation that stopped me,” Yap, 40, told The Malaysian Insight.
“The enthusiasm to head home was always met with a countervailing pattern of unpleasant news back home, one after another – corruption, discrimination, safety issues, and more corruption! It was always ‘the timing is not right’ for me,” he said of his decision to temporarily shelve his plans to return.
“So, I stayed out, but also stayed close.”
But, Yap said, the results of GE14 affected him “greatly”, and reignited his desire to return and serve the nation.
“GE14 is just the beginning. Having a new government does not mean the work is done. The country needs a lot of healing, and there is still a lot of work to do,” said Yap, who now resides in San Francisco.
“What we make of the new Malaysia now is up to us. I would like to play a role.”
While work responsibilities have stopped him from planning an immediate move, he said he will check out Talentcorp’s Returning Expert Programme (REP) to keep informed of the opportunities available.
REP is a programme for qualified Malaysians living and working abroad as professionals in selected industries. The programme helps place Malaysians in suitable jobs, and offers incentive packages, such as tax exemptions and the fast-tracking of permanent residency for foreign spouses.
Throughout the seven years since its inception, REP has attracted only 3,600 Malaysians to return, a number that its former CEO, Johan Mahmood Merican, has admitted as being a “drop in the ocean”.
But, Fiona Wan, who has been working in the UK for the past 10 years, said she believes that professionals moving home may be “a slow trickle at first”, but if the new government shows consistency, there will be “a large wave of returning professionals” in the next five years.
She said she will reach out to her network of professional contacts for opportunities to return home, adding that she is “overjoyed” with the outcome of GE14.
“I shouted at the top of my voice and had to explain to my British colleagues why I was so happy that day,” said the economics graduate, who was involved in several aviation capital investment programmes at Gatwick and Heathrow airports.
The mother of two said she had always entertained the idea of returning home to work, but thought the doors were closed after her application for citizenship for her children was rejected.
She said news from home was always “dire and bordering on the absurd”, further pushing away the thoughts of her ever returning home – at least, until BN was defeated in GE14.
“The prospect of returning is definitely much brighter as the country is open to any possibility – the good kind – due to the results of GE14.” – June 2, 2018.
Source : The Malaysian Insight by Julia Yeow
Indie Borneo 