In June of this year, I wrote an article about Penang being more than just a nostalgia act and we have to ensure that our beloved state rises to become a high-income economy in order to retain our talents from migrating to ‘greener pastures’ either locally or overseas.

Of course, some agreed while some disagreed with me, citing that the young can always leave to earn a living elsewhere and come back here to retire and so Penang should just remain as it is. Their justification was that some of the people who left want to see Penang be exactly the same as when they first left so that they can always enjoy that stroll down memory lane.

Which brings me to the subject that I would like to discuss today. I know... I know, you’re wondering what has Donald Trump’s victory got to do with Penang. Well, it is not so much as to discuss the man himself but to discuss the underlying reasons on why he was able to get himself elected president of the United States despite many experts and opinion polls writing him off, some even from the very beginning of his campaign.

There lies the underlying problem isn't it? All the seasoned politicians, experts, analysts and researchers condemned Trump for his rhetorical speeches that were often controversial in so many ways thinking that no sane American would ever vote for him. We all dismissed his campaign as a joke.

These same people also predicted that the Brexit vote would result in the UK voting to stay in the EU because no sane British resident would vote to leave after analysing the perks of remaining in the EU.

Trump spoke about bringing America back to their conservative Christian roots and while most liberals saw it as a step backwards, to the average American, it represented what they had been advocating for years. Trump spoke about building walls, enacting stricter immigration policies , protecting American workers and how ineffective the Barack Obama administration had been in dealing with the terrorists.

Hundreds of thousands of Americans from the Mid-Western States stood and listened while the elite arrogantly dismissed the phenomenon as they felt no one would ever listen to Trump. Just like when Brexit campaigners spoke about restricting immigration from European Union countries to protect jobs for British citizens, it was brushed aside and laughed at.

And they intended to make their voices heard this time. The US Declaration of Independence listed three ‘Unalienable Rights’ that a government should protect and those are the rights to ‘Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness’.

The American people reminded their political and social elites on election day that all Americans were entitled to those rights. They did not have to voice out their reminders, they just voted for Donald Trump as opposed to the ‘chosen one’ of mainstream America.

Well, Brexit happened and Trump has just been elected president sending the world into shock. Some within the mainstream media were so sure of Hillary Clinton’s victory that they had gone ahead to publish special commemorative issues for her presidency. After all, those ‘expert’ polls and opinions had predicted her victory.

Many have forgotten that a democracy gives the right of voting to every member of society irrespective of social class, ethnicity or religion. If you respect democracy, you have to respect the will of all the people. I know some people said that Trump lost the popular vote but that’s just by a small margin out of over 120 million voters. Trump managed to win almost 60 million votes for himself and especially those from the crucial ‘swing states’.

My point is, Trump’s victory is a wake-up call to the social elites who think that they are the only ones that matter. A democracy is about representing every member of society not just those who talk, dress and act like us. Many of those who voted for Trump probably did not even like Trump to begin with, as he represented the very ‘elite’ that the working class detested, but voted for him anyway because he was not the ‘chosen one’ of the social elites.

They voted for Donald Trump just because just to show that they could. It was a protest vote against mainstream America whom they feel had forgotten their plights and struggles of everyday life. Therefore they chose to send a political outsider whose rhetorical speeches reflected their frustrations, to the White House as opposed to Hillary Clinton who represented the elitist status quo of business as usual.

‘Every Penangite needs to be cared for’

Therefore back to Penang, when I wrote about the story about why we had to raise the economy of Penang through transport and economic development, it is because every Penangite needed to be cared for irrespective of race, religion or economic level. We have to ensure that all Penangites can earn a living in the state that we all love and protect.

You see, not every Penangite has the ability to study overseas and seek employment elsewhere. Maybe it is because they do not have the financial capabilities, maybe it is because they have to care for their ageing parents, maybe it is because they have disabled siblings to care for. Whatever the reason, they have to seek their fortunes and future here, and their call for a better quality of life is something we have to provide as a responsible government.

Therefore all the plans the Penang state government has designed and executed was done for that simple reason, to retain talents, provide jobs, provide homes and to create an International City where an economy can thrive to ensure all Penangites have a future in our beloved state irrespective of economic standards.

Not everyone can go overseas and those who want to stay should not be told to leave just so that some can preserve the entire state the as a museum of a once glorious past. It is about time for all the political and social experts, analysts, and researchers to come down to the ground and understand the everyday grouses and problems of the citizens here.

Theories and data minus the human factor can only result in a similar situation to what has taken place in the United States of America.

Trump’s victory has shown that you can do all the analysts and research you want, sometimes the common people will never voice their protests out loud, they will just use their votes to remind you that they are there, they are citizens and their struggles need to be addressed. The great lesson of Trump’s victory to the elites of society is not to dismiss the needs of different people just because they do not talk, dress or act like us.

The Penang state government has represented and addressed the needs of all Penangites and will continue to do so as every single Penangite matters. The pursuit of happiness may be famous for being an American phrase, but if you think about it, pursuing happiness is universal and it applies to everyone and not just the social elites.

CHRIS LEE CHUN KIT is a city councillor with the Penang Island City Council (Majlis Bandaraya Pulau Pinang) representing the DAP.