KUALA TERENGGANU – Datuk Raja Kamarul Bahrin Shah Raja Ahmad, the Terengganu royal who smuggled his children on a boat from Australia in 1992, believes the extremely stressful period helped build his character.
The 58-year-old prince had fought to bring his children back to Malaysia after their mother Jacqueline Gillespie spirited them to Australia in 1985.
During the eight-year custody battle that followed, he steadily saw his rights being eroded each time he went to visit his children.
“They took away my credit cards and gave me limited access to them. The final straw was a court order in 1991 which prohibited me from bringing them to the mosque,” he told The Star.
Helpless to fight the system there, he was finally forced to smuggle his children back to Malaysia in a speedboat, with the help of a friend.
Today, Raja Bahrin, as he is commonly known, draws inspiration from the experience as he ventures into political waters for the first time.
The prominent architect is PAS’ Kuala Terengganu parliamentary candidate for GE13 and he confesses he is relishing this exhausting but exciting new journey.
“What I went through made me a strong and resilient person. I was up against an entire system, not an individual. If I could survive that, I’m sure that I can do it here,” he said, adding that he also drew on his knowledge as an architect.
Raja Bahrin said he had been reluctantly drawn into politics and prefers to call himself an “activist-cum-politician”.
He said he would focus on championing social issues in Terengganu, something he feels has been neglected in favour of development.
One of the key turning points that led him to join politics was the tearing down of the Ladang Tok Pelam craftsman village last year.
The village used to house brass makers, silver and goldsmiths, keris and batik makers, but the area has now been levelled to make way for development.
“Great cities have always kept their heritage. As an architect, I acknowledge the need for new buildings but not at the expense of the people’s heritage and way of life,” he said.
Raja Bahrin, a founding member of the Malaysian Heritage Trust, said there was no point in labelling Kuala Terengganu a heritage waterfront city when only cosmetic changes were taking place.
He said the issues he would address if he wins include better amenities, public transportation, traffic management and more public parking. – The Star Online
