Follow us on Telegram for the latest updates: https://t.me/mothershipsg

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim does not have time for your daddy issues.

On Dec. 6, Twitter user @mirulwrld responded to Anwar's tweet about corruption among politicians and elites in Malaysia with "selamat pagi papa" (good morning papa), which prompted Anwar to respond with, "pls- don't do that".

pls- dont do that

— Anwar Ibrahim (@anwaribrahim) December 6, 2022

Anwar's refusal to portray himself as a paternal figure sets him apart from his predecessors who had used paternal nicknames to try and imply they are father figures for Malaysians.

For instance, former Malaysian Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob referred to himself as "Pak Long", a Malay term that is usually reserved for the oldest uncle in the family.  Sabri posted this TikTok video during his time in office with the caption saying, "Pak Long loves all of you".

@ismailsabrirasmiPak Long sayang kalian semua…♬ original sound - sirⓂ️enung

Anwar's predecessor, Muhyiddin Yassin, has called himself "Abah", which means Daddy in Malay.

"Sorry if this 'abah' has started using the cane!" he said in a 2020 speech telling Malaysians why the authorities have to implement strict measures to curb a surge in Covid-19 cases, Malay Mail reported.

Twitter users lapped it up

Anwar's tweet was warmly received by netizens, who responded with jokes and memes of their own.

Anwar looking at that tweet be like pic.twitter.com/75T8qKQM5N

— Sam to the Sow 🏴🏴🏴 (@gc_sow) December 6, 2022

He said: pic.twitter.com/NqFqLJTfJb

— cy (@IamMrYeow) December 6, 2022

One user also contrasted Anwar's response to previous leaders who were more keen to embody the paternal figure image.

Previous govt daddies... pic.twitter.com/VdELwAdRvD

— Guna (Learning new stuffs one at a time) (@G300722) December 6, 2022

Another user noted that Anwar had once called people of different races his children.

Laa, kata semua anak dia.. Ni nak deny pulak..🤭 pic.twitter.com/XUlnNVXXWN

— Mohamad Redzuan Samsuri (@munsyid_RED) December 6, 2022

Read more

Top images via Getty Images and @anwaribrahim/Twitter