NEW HEIGHT IN STUPIDITY: NOW, FORGETTING THE NUMBER OF SPIKES IN MALAYSIAN FLAG IS DEEMED ‘TRAITOROUS’ – YET DESECRATING MALAY DIGNITY BY CALLING NON-MALAYS ‘ENEMIES OF ISLAM’ IS NOT

Just when I thought Semenanjung Malaysia could not get any worse than the Kongres Maruah Melayu, we now have the idea of forgetting the number of spikes in the star of a Malaysian flag as ‘traitorous’. There are MPs who would question the loyalty to the country based on a probable mistake of a flag? There are ministers in PH calling those who do not remember the flag’s characteristic as a traitor? Really? Are you serious? In this article I will call on Malaysians to measure what traitorous means to us as opposed to those who sit in Parliament.

First of all, I want to ask Malaysians if they can remember the proportion of the blue box containing the crescent moon and the star to the bigger rectangle containing the stripes. I don’t know. Am I a traitor? Next, can Malaysians recall how wide are the stripes and how many red ones as opposed to the white ones are there? I remember drawing the flag in Standard One but I forget how wide and how many there were. Am I a traitor? Can anyone recall the radius of the crescent moon and the width of the widest crescent? I certainly don’t. So… how many times a traitor am I now? Even if I were to look up the flag on the internet and punch in the images I would not be able to venture a guess which of the flags are in correct proportion of the blue field to the stripes and the radius of the crescent or even the star. Would that seriously entitle me to a SOSMA detention as a traitor to the country?

Now let me remind the MPs and Ministers who are quick to label Malaysians as traitors because of a mistake in the flag about what real treachery is in our midst. First of, is not the Kongres Maruah Melayu organised by public universities and sanctioned by ministries and politicians in attendance a treacherous act to Malaysians? Why not? The Kongres puts the blame entirely on others except the Malays who were in power for 60 years. Stupidity or treachery? The 360 academics who did the research I am sure has PhDs and glowing resumes. I call them treacherous and traitors to Malaysians.

Next of, why isn’t ministers appalled at some Malay politicians from Islamic parties calling Malaysians musoh-musoh Islam not considered traitors? There have been Muftis calling Malaysians kafir harbi of which under the Islamic traditional interpretation means one’s blood is halal to be spilt. That is not traitorous? What about the same politicians calling Malays to vote only Malays and that it was sinful to vote non-Malays? Is that not in contradiction to the constitution of this country? Not traitorous? How about an Umno leader calling for Jihad against Malaysians simply because of an unproven allegation of insulting the Prophet by one elderly man? Are we allowed to kill Malaysian citizens because one Chinese man insulted the Prophet, Allah or Islam? Is that not a traitorous call to arms?

Backtrack three years..what about the Jamal gangs of Red Shirt ruffians calling Cina babi oendatang harus mati? That is not traitorous? What about Friday Sermons which do not mention these acts of desecrating the dignity of fellow Malaysians sinful in Islam and violating our Rukunegara. Why not brand these Melayu ruffians traitors? Ooops..I forgot to put a capital R on Rukunegara…am I a traitor? Wait a minute, is Rukunegara one word or two? Wiki says its either one or two. Which is it really? I can recite the Rukunegara by heart. Can I challenge Ministers to recite? You don’t remember? Traitor-lah!

Who is to fight for the dignity of Teoh Beng Hock, Kevin Morais and the disappearance of Raymond Koh and Amri Che Mat? If I ask any Malay, I can venture 99% would not care two cents about their fate. Can these non-caring people be called traitors to the well being of our nation?

When a diagram of a flag or a piece of cloth with some colours on it is weighed more than the dignity of Malaysians, then we truly are completely lost. I would be ashamed to be called a Malaysian with a leadership that would place the unintentional mistakes of a flag rendition over the desecrated dignity of Malaysians. I say shame on you Ministers and leaders of PH.

We Malaysians honour the flag and symbols of our nation, but we honour the respect, mutual tolerance and acceptance of each other’s cultures and faith much much more. We can do without leaders who do not understand where dignity is to be placed.

At the end of the day, we now know whom not to vote into Parliament in the next election… those who sold our dignity for a cheap price of unintentional graphic symbols.

(Professor Dr. Mohd Tajuddin Mohd Rasdi 

– Mysinchew