What is it like to be a teenager who wants to exercise his democratic rights in a BN dominated Malaysia?
He notes that BN ministers rarely discuss important topics like fiscal policy, education, health, the environment, energy and transportation. What the teenager observes is that sex, race and religion are key themes and major political weapons, in Malaysian public life.
In other words, Malaysian politics is like watching a poor quality soap opera – lots of sex, scandal and tripe, but little of any substance.
Some say we inhabit a Malaysia which is far removed from that of our parents, grandparents or great grandparents, who lived prior to and around the time of independence.
Perhaps we traded the British for our new colonial masters – the BN rulers.
A teenage Malay would have been brought up on Ketuanan Melayu and he is aware that he need only coast along in neutral to get a place at a local university or to receive a scholarship for a local or foreign institution of higher learning. For those in the non-Malay world, it is the law of the jungle – only the fittest survive.
A Malay student at school, would have great difficulty trying to learn English, even if he wanted to. The boy who tries to speak English to practise and gain familiarity with the language, will be teased that he desires to be an ‘anglophile’. Many Malays then give up.
Indian and Chinese students know that only the best and lucky few will be accepted into local universities. Encouraged by parents and peers, they strive to work hard and master English because this is his ticket to a better life.
The teenager finds that history deals with the Malacca sultanate. There are no Hindu or Buddhist kingdoms. He knows nothing of the great civilisations or of the cradle of democracy. So what if the world knows about the various Chinese dynasties, the Boston tea-party, Florence Nightingale and the Crimean War or even the two World Wars. BN only wants him to know about BN.
He is lucky if his headmistress does not make reference to his crucifix, or the prayer knot on his wrist if he is a Hindu. He is thankful if no one condemns him for being a non-Malay, who should return to his country of origin.
Even breaks are a problem. Malays and non-Malays who share the contents of their lunch boxes, will soon find the Malay student being told, by teacher, to “not mix with the kaffir.” To avoid his Malay friend from further embarrassment, the non-Malay keeps to his non-Malay friends. So much for 1Malaysia.
Powerful political tool
When he has finished his studies, the teenager has the BTN course to go through. Again, the Malay-ness and Islamicisation of BN’s Malaysia, is emphasized. The non-Malay is made to feel like a reject and an excrescence.
In the big bad world, doors to civil-service jobs are shut in the face of the non-Malay. He also finds that he cannot get onto the property ladder as easily as his Malay counterpart, who is able to negotiate one of many fiscal incentives which are open to him. Discounts are only available to the Malay, for purchasing houses.
The non-Malay is aware that throughout his life, it was race and religion that divided him from his Malay friends.
For the conscientious young adult who wants to observe his voting rights, he finds that BN offers him sex, as a powerful political tool.
BN’s emphasis is on sex – and the many versions of it. BN’s politicians tend to hide behind catchy slogans, and sexual scandals.
The teenager, or young adult, finds that he can screen a sex video but must make sure he does not ask for money. That way, he won’t be breaking the law. At least not according to the IGP.
He knows that if he finds a Malay person, he can set up a company and the Malay can be his front. All he has to do, is pay the Malay a monthly retainer, then he does the work and keeps the profits.
He is envious of his Malay friend who can marry four women and divorce the women when he tires of them, without paying maintenance as there is no enforcement of this ruling.
Last week, former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said on his blog, that he was sad a Malay reader had regretted he had been born a Malay.
The sex tape
This week, three Malay men, produced a sex video of the Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, to discredit him. One of the people behind this despicable act was the alleged child rapist Abdul Rahim Thamby Chik a disgraced former Chief Minister (CM) of Malacca.
We have the current CM of Malacca who ruled that Malay/Muslim children can get married by the state, if the parents refuse to give them permission – in other words, state sanctioned paedophilia.
A few weeks ago, a Malay woman Ummi Hafilda talked about giving Anwar ‘golden showers’ as she squatted over him. She is one of the women engaged by Mahathir and Najib in their master plan, to bring about Anwar’s downfall. Ummi was a popular sideshow at the recent by-elections.
The Chief Minister of Sarawak, Taib Mahmud became a multi-billionaire by robbing his own people but the PM has dismissed calls for Taib to be investigated for corruption.
All that is distasteful has Malay fingerprints all over it.
The politics starved teenager realises that Malaysia has no functioning parliament. Opposition political parties cannot operate freely as they are ever fearful of the security services and waste time talking about human rights and democracy.
If there were a proper democracy, political parties would not need to concentrate on human rights issues or have to watch what they say for fear of being charged under the Sedition Act.
In a properly functioning democracy, parties will work towards moving the country forward. They will discuss how to improve health, education, transportation, the economy and people’s lives.
Without a functioning judiciary, the corrupt BN politicians can continue to plunder and sidestep important issues. They only do this because they are morally and intellectually bankrupt of ideas and means, to move the country forwards.
Mariam Mokhtar is a petroleum chemist and also an environmental pollution-control scientist. - FMT
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