Labor’s Sam Lim speaks English, Indonesian, Malay, a handful of Chinese language languages – and dolphin.
The newly elected member for Tangney is a former dolphin coach, a one-time Buddhist monk, an award-winning police officer and a fan of that divisive fruit the durian.
The Western Australia premier, Mark McGowan, predicted again in December that Chinese language-Malaysian Lim would oust the previous public service minister Ben Morton from the beforehand secure Liberal Perth voters.
McGowan calls Lim, who was born in Malaysia, a “real man” from “very humble beginnings … [who came to Australia] for a greater life for his household”.
Lim tells Guardian Australia that, when he was youthful, he answered an advert to take care of dolphins as a result of he wasn’t incomes sufficient as a Malaysian police officer to outlive. At Johor safari park, he educated them (his “greatest job ever”) till the park went bust and the workers needed to launch them at sea.
His favorite was the youngest, Ding Loi (Lightning).
“He was a really cheeky boy however very beautiful,” Lim says. Requested what people can study from the good and gregarious mammals, he solutions emphatically: “empathy”.
“They perceive and reply to our feelings,” he says.
The day after the brand new PM, Anthony Albanese, known as for a kinder, extra caring Australia, Lim captured hearts from Perth to Kuala Lumpur by speaking about that point in his life.
Sam Lim, MP for Tangney says he was born in a poor household, dwelling in a house with no energy or water for the primary 15 years of his life. He speaks 9 languages and was a dolphin coach.
He says he beloved it as a result of dolphins "are so real, dolphins won't ever harm you." #AusPolpic.twitter.com/1enCKY5vI9
At a press convention, he stood with the newly enlarged WA Labor crew. He talked about his poverty-stricken upbringing, with a leaking roof and earth ground, with no energy or working water. And life at Johor safari park: “I beloved it, as a result of dolphins are so real. Dolphins by no means harm you.
“Should you really feel harm, you soar within the swimming pool, the dolphin will come to you, and attempt to consolation you. Whenever you go indignant, you soar within the pool, they run away. They simply can really feel it.”
Lim had some “good karma”, increase a small enterprise, earlier than migrating to Australia in 2002. He joined the WA police in 2006 at a comparatively mature 45 years outdated, and labored with multicultural communities. In 2020 he was named police officer of the 12 months.
He says his precedence in Canberra shall be establishing a nationwide integrity fee. “As a police officer I deliver integrity to all the pieces I do – I need to deliver that integrity to politics,” he says.
One among eight siblings, he lives along with his spouse and has three grown-up kids and a granddaughter. He says he needed to study lots of languages – notably completely different Chinese language languages, together with Hainanese and Hokkien – in any other case he “wouldn’t get the perfect meals at eating places”.
Meals is the factor he misses most about Malaysia. “Particularly durian,” he says. “It’s a smelly fruit, however I find it irresistible.”
McGowan says Lim is “actually consultant” of his various voters.
“Sam’s work with WA police has been rightly recommended, particularly his work with multicultural communities through the pandemic,” he says.
“Sam ran a robust native marketing campaign that was naturally constructed on his capability as a real, devoted member of his neighborhood, who understands the priorities and aspirations of his constituents.”
Lim’s pal and colleague, the Burt MP, Matt Keogh, says Lim appears the a part of a police officer however is “extremely softly spoken, caring” and “a delicate particular person”.
“He’s a extremely all the way down to earth, real one who cares for his neighborhood. He’s been a neighborhood policing officer, one of many individuals who engages with all of the native multicultural communities and at-risk communities,” he says.
Labor secured a swing of virtually 12% towards the Liberals in Tangney. Morton had been criticised for spending an excessive amount of outing of WA however argued that he was advocating for the voters in Canberra. He instructed the Australian newspaper that folks wished a member who “delivers domestically however performs an vital function nationally”. “And with me you get each,” he mentioned, earlier than his defeat.
Lim’s win was celebrated extensively in Malaysian media, with a number of retailers noting the truth that he was the second Malaysian-born elected consultant, becoming a member of the brand new overseas affairs minister, Penny Wong.
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