The split was an especially bruising affair for Lee Kwan Yew, because it was he who had championed the "Malaysian Malaysia" line, and it was under this banner that many had rallied to his support. Who among his supporters would not have felt betrayed when Lee abandoned the Federation without even consulting them first?
李光耀尤其難過，因為許多人相信了他的「馬來西亞人的馬來西亞」，團結在他的領導之下，如今在未被事先告知的情況下，李光耀自己先放棄了，豈非背叛和出賣？