the late MGG pillai – 2nd anniversary

i had forgotten about mgg pillai’s death anniversary until i read about it in malaysiakini yesterday – a nice piece written by his son, sreejit pillai.

i had known mgg pillai for a very long time… ever since he started ‘sang kancil’, the newsgroup duscussion forum. when he passed away, i had blog about it and at his first anniversary, i had also mentioned about it (but no post, just directing to my first post about him). well, since there was a good article by his son on his 21st anniversary, i’d better made a post here to mention his 2nd anniversary.

ok, the following is taken from malaysiakini (including the picture you see here).
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MGG Pillai, father of online journalism
Sreejit Pillai
Apr 28, 08 12:25pm

In memoriam I regret profoundly that my father, MGG Pillai, did not live to see the momentous developments which nearly toppled the ruling Barisan Nasional government last month. Today, the April 28 is the second anniversary of my father’s passing away. For my family and me, hardly a quiet moment of self-reflection goes by without him appearing in our thoughts.

While my family and I are sad that he did not live to see the developments of March 8, MGG Pillai would have been immensely gratified to know that the cyberspace journalism which he started four years before the emergence of Malaysiakini, has flowered into an immovable force fueled by the hunger for justice and righteousness.

It was gratifying to note that in the post-euphoria that swept this nation after March 8, some bloggers still remembered MGG Pillai as a giant which sowed the seeds that moved boulders.

While it is almost certain that his name will gradually float along the river of history, and the next generation of bloggers may not be aware of his contributions, MGG Pillai would not have minded that one bit. He would be happy to know that his efforts in educating readers for the past 40 years were not in vain. My father was never one to chase glory and pomp all his life unlike many of his contemporaries who succumbed to the money trail.

Many of his contemporaries chased the fat dragon which promised status and prestige. I knew some of them because I called them “uncle” and sat on their laps when I was a little boy when they visited my father for coffee and conversation. Later, some of them abandoned journalism, got rich beyond their dreams and occasionally pitied my father for being too idealistic.

Stay true to journalism

My father never viewed journalism as a stepping stone to gain favours from politicians and businessmen; he never aimed for grand sounding posts like chief news editor, group chief editor and all the privileges that came with big titles.

He was more interested in writing fair, balanced commentaries and reports for any media interested in his work, be it a small newspaper in the Caribbean or some of the biggest names such as The Times, Newsweek, Spectator, The Independent and Washington Post. It was not the medium that he cared about; it was far more important to him that his message and his thoughts could be relayed to readers.

MGG Pillai just wanted to write, enlighten readers and stay true to the pure ideals of journalism. This trade does not promise riches, just the nobility of being true to one’s self and the satisfaction of facing one’s Maker that one lived a honest, earnest life when the fleeting moment of one’s mortality fades into eternity.

A few days before my father passed away, in conversations with visitors, he had reaffirmed his belief in what he was doing is noble and true to the craft of journalism. “If I can open the eyes of even one person to bad governance, I would be satisfied.” MGG Pillai, on the verge of death, did not waver in his beliefs and I am proud to call him my father.

Author Paulo Coelho wrote in ‘Like the Flowing River’, “a warrior of light knows that certain impossible battles deserve to be fought, which is why he is not afraid of disappointments, for he knows the power of sword and the strength of his love … If he does not struggle against what is wrong – even if it seems beyond his strength – he will never find the right road.”

MGG Pillai fought impossible battles all his life and faced disappointments in his professional career; he paid a price for his idealism and beliefs but in the end – when it matters the most – he found the right road.  MGG Pillai persevered right till the end.

He will always be my warrior of light.

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MGG PILLAI (1939-2006), revered by many as father of Malaysia’s Internet journalism, died two years ago at the age of 67. He was a Malaysiakini columnist for many years and was unrelenting in his campaign on judicial corruption.