While the ‘Green Wave’ from our more pious neighbours in Terengganu crashes louder with each passing election, promising a future steeped in antiquated modesty and moral policing, Pahang seems to be, well, treading water.
Or worse, quietly allowing the tide to creep into our own backyard.
But fear not, for I bring not a sermon but a revelation: the best defence against a creeping far-right ideology might just be found on a football pitch, under the boots of a woman.
The far-right shares a curious, almost comical obsession with controlling women. Their ideal world is one where women are tucked neatly into traditional boxes – preferably silent, unseen, and certainly not sweating profusely while chasing a ball.
I’ve personally waded into the ‘Green Wave’ heartland, knocking on the doors of clubs like Real Chukai FC and Kerteh FC to form women’s football teams. The response was a masterclass in polite terror – a quiet, almost apologetic turning away, citing the very real dread that their ventures would be “demonised by the community”.
History is littered with examples of this bizarre phobia. Germany, at one time, found women’s football so utterly offensive that the German FA banned its women’s team between 1955 and 1970.
Before them, the English FA famously slammed the door on women’s football in 1921, deeming it “quite unsuitable for females.” It’s almost as if the sight of a woman in bloomers, let alone shorts, possessing strength and agency, triggers a primal panic in the hearts of those who yearn for rigid, predictable hierarchies.
If an ideology despises women’s public and physical empowerment, you can bet your last ringgit that it’s leaning pretty far-right – which brings us, rather awkwardly, back to the east coast, especially Pahang.
Where is Pahang’s formidable women’s team in the National Women’s League (LWN)? Nowhere. Oh sure, they had a valiant attempt with SSM Pahang, a plucky group of secondary school kids from a sports school who played their hearts out last season.
But let’s be honest: a handful of talented teenagers, no matter how skilled, rarely ignites the kind of fierce, unwavering state pride that truly bonds a diverse populace. They were a school team – not the state’s undisputed champions, the embodiment of Pahang’s spirit.
Their participation, while commendable, never really developed that deep sense of belonging or fierce affinity among the everyday Pahang rakyat. And in this void – this glaring absence of a strong, state-backed women’s football presence – lies a danger more sinister.
Because the lack of such a team, for all its subtlety, whispers volumes about Pahang’s own ideological inclinations. It sends a chilling signal, suggesting that perhaps we aren’t as committed to progressive values, to actual women’s empowerment, as we claim.
It leaves the door ajar for conservative narratives to seep in, unchecked. It’s an own goal, pure and simple, for the very ruling coalition that prides itself on stability and a unity agenda.
How can you genuinely claim to represent a progressive, inclusive Malaysia if you’re not even willing to fully back half of your population in an internationally celebrated sport?
It would be madness to claim that a women’s football team is the absolute answer. It is not a mystical charm against every far-right sermon. But investing in a women’s football team is a powerful, highly visible, and deeply symbolic move.
It will be a living testament to Pahang’s commitment to modernity, to diversity, and to an inclusive future. It nullifies any ideology that seeks to put women back in the kitchen – or worse, out of sight entirely.
It’s a public declaration that Pahang embraces its daughters’ ambitions and talents. Having a women’s team is also about showing the world – and more importantly, our own citizens – that Pahang isn’t just talking about progress, it’s actively investing in it.
Open those coffers, splash some serious cash, and let’s get our women onto that field. While some might be busy debating the proper length of a telekung (praying garment for women), Pahang needs to be busy celebrating its women, charting a course towards a future that is inclusive, dynamic, and unapologetically progressive.
Let’s score big, before the ‘Green Wave’ leaves us entirely under water.
P/S: I’ve heard strong whispers of a team called East Coast Ombak FC gathering their resources, ready to make a splash in the LWN scene next year.
The views expressed here are the personal opinion of the writer and do not necessarily represent that of Twentytwo13.
