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Last Sunday out of the nine letters published in the Forum page, seven people wrote in to comment on the illconceived suggestion by the Women’s Ministry headed by Datuk Rina Harun on how wives should dress at home during the MCO.To add insult to injury, the Ministry suggested that wives at home stop nagging their husbands during this period and speak in the tone of Doremon, the Japanese cartoon character with the high pitch voice. To be fair to the Women’s Ministry, they have since apologised for this moronic proposals and withdrawn it from their blue print but Malaysia became a laughing stock the world over as a result of this proposal. If only they had sought my views, I would have told them this cannot work for the following reasons.

1) Imagine this – You have been married for 40 years to the same person you dated for three years before that. You have grown to be very familiar with her manner of speech, tone of voice and social behaviour.

Fast forward to the present situation. You are having your morning coffee and reading your newspaper. Suddenly, you hear this squeaky Doremon voice behind you. Two things will happen. You will either rush to get a bottle of Woods peppermint cough syrup for her or you will jump out of your skin. Why ? Because it may not be her!! That is not the tone of voice you have heard for over 40 years bah.

2) With the rise of gender equality and women’s rights over decades, you will know, (if you don’t already) that your wife is no longer the subservient gentle being that your grandmother was. They want to be heard. It is their right to be heard. How do you expect to be taken seriously if you speak like Doremon? You need to sound like Margaret Thatcher or Rafidah Aziz lah and if you are still not being given that opportunity, put your oldest frying pan on the fire and chat on the phone. Two things will happen. Either the frying pan will overheat or your phone will. The nature of men is such that they almost certainly expect to be served! Well Amigoes, that was  in the era of the 19 kong kongs!

3) When the Women’s Ministry thought of this unrealistic approach, the idea must have come from someone who is a Doremon fan. Whether that fan imitates Doremon or not, that is another matter. But I would have been more than happy to hear how she ask her husband for marketing money in the tone of Doremon. Chances are he would grovel at her as some husbands do when asked for money (I don’t do that. I don’t have money)and responded in the voice of Conan the Barbarian as opposed to sounding like Doremon !

4) Dressing at home as if you are in the office? That’s ridiculous! I say, when your wife is at home you want her to be as relaxed as possible lah. That way you cut across all tension and communicate as husband and wife. Nobody talks down to anybody as you possibly do when you talk to your subordinates in the office. So when you dress up formally in the office do you really talk like Doremon to your subordinates? What next? Convert your home into an office atmosphere? You can try if you want to. Just go the front door and keep ringing the door bell. See whether Doremon answers the door or Conan the Barbarian.

5) Finally ask yourself  this. What does your wife change into after office hours and she no longer dress formally? Does she slip into a homemaker mode from formal attire to perhaps a sarong? How do you make that switch and yet be taken seriously by your life long partner?

Why not just enjoy these times together as one family? Bond together and laugh together. Catch up with one another because something like this might never happen again.

Just enjoy these precious moments while you can.