ONE Malay proverb cites "raising a sunken log," when referring to a "competitive" situation where one person feels unable—or at least lacks self-confidence—to defeat someone else, so he resorts to exposing a past history that has long been buried away. In reality, a sunken log can still be used, for example in the building of a house, if the wood is of good enough quality.

This proverb is appropriate when consi