WHEN the President of our Senate, Datuk Awang Bemee Awang Ali Basah, invited me to accompany him to China to participate in the Asean-China Week 2025 in Fuzhou City last month, I accepted without hesitation.
China is a country I have traversed across extensively. Having visited 25 of its cities previously, this latest trip brings my tally to 27 cities over the 20 years since I first became a member of the Dewan Rakyat. Yet, every journey there strikes a chord deeper than mere diplomacy. My maternal ancestry traces back to the Teochew people of Shantou City in Guangdong Province, a cultural tether that offers me a unique perspective each time I walk on Chinese soil and retrace the steps of my family’s past.
