BELIEVE me, I cried with Gordon Brown.

Was I surprised that I actually shed tears hearing the British prime minister's speech over the BBC channel last Monday night? Yes, I was.

You see, it was by chance that I tuned into BBC just as Brown had begun his hour-long speech to the Labour Party Conference in Bournemouth. It was the prime minister's first address to his Labour Party Conference as party leader. He succeeded Tony Blair as prime minister and Labour leader only three months ago.

I paid attention to Brown's speech for a while, then found him to be an articulate and impressive speaker and held on till the end, after which he deservedly received an extended standing ovation from the 2,000 party delegates present. He was emotional hearing the thunderous applause and fought back tears as he held his wife Sarah's hand on stage.

Again, tears welled in my eyes. It was an outpouring of emotion for this man whom I believe history will honour as a great British statesman.

Gordon Brown left an impression in me - now, at least I'm aware that he is just an ordinary man imbued with a burning desire to give his all in the service of his Great Britain and his fellow citizens.

What initially led me to shed tears as I followed his speech was the way he talked of his parents and how they taught him about family and the great virtues of hard work, doing your duty and always trying to do the right thing.

'The real reason I am here'

Born and brought up in his native Scotland, Brown said the values he was brought up with "are not just what I learned; they are part of the fabric of the life I have led".

"And I have school friends I have kept in touch with all my life who have shared the good times and comforted me in the bad times.

"I benefited from great and dedicated teachers. And I was fortunate enough to get to university.

"But as a teenager I saw close friends of mine who might have gone to college or an apprenticeship or to university who never did. I know some could not afford to stay on at school. For others, their potential had never been nurtured.

"When they heard about further education, they thought, or their parents thought, it was not for people like them.

"And the reason I am here - the real reason I am here - is that I want their children and their grandchildren whom I also represent to have all the chances that were not available to my school friends when we were growing up.

"That's the reason I am here: I want the best of chances for all families", the prime minister declared.

Isn't that touching?

The other incident which made me somewhat emotional was when the prime minister spoke of the NHS (National Health Service).

Blind in one eye

He announced that his government will invest more than ever before - 15 billion of public money - financing the genius of British researchers and doctors as they convert breakthroughs in genetics, stem cell research and new drugs into cures and vaccines to combat cancer and the deadliest of diseases.

"My vision of the NHS - an NHS that is both pioneering new cures and personal to you.

"And why do I believe so strongly in the NHS?

"When I was at school it was football, rugby, running, sports: these were what I did all the time and so I was fitter then.

"But when I was sixteen, when I was playing for my school rugby team against our former pupils, someone accidentally kicked me near my eyes. And from the age of 16 to 21, I spent a lot of time in hospital as the NHS worked to save my sight.

"I learned that with a simple twist of fate, life can change.

"It was the skills of a surgeon, the care of wonderful nurses, the attention and yes, the love and care of the NHS staff that managed to save one of my eyes.

"And it is because of the NHS that I can see the words I read today.

"The experiences we live through shape the way we think of the world. Experiences like these have made me the person I am.

"Sometimes people say I am too serious and I fight too hard and maybe that's true.

"But these experiences taught me what families all across Britain know: that things don't always come easy and there are things worth fighting for.

I was so touched by these word!

Now. I am aware that Gordon Brown has only one eye - his left side is an artificial eye.

Similar issues

As Brown also paid tribute to [the absent] Tony Blair and another former Labour leader Neil Kinnock (who was present), the BBC camera zoomed in on Kinnock and I could notice tears rolling down his cheeks. So I wasn't the only one who shed tears with the prime minister.

Borwn's long address also showed the similar problems Malaysia and her former colonial master, Britain, are facing today.

They included the issues of patriotism, values, crime, drug, education, environment, social, housing, political and economic. Unfortunately, space constraint in this column has prevented me from detailing these issues.

But I must salute Gordon Brown. He has come of age as the British prime minister sooner that I though he would have.

Well done, Mr Prime Minister. May all your visions for a greater Britain be realised for the benefit of the people you have pledged to serve. I wish you the best.

PAUL SIR is a columnist with The Borneo Post. This article was first published in the Sarawak-based paper and is reproduced here with permission.