Obsession with race, religion diverts attention from pressing problems

 

Someone asked me a question recently, and one that got me thinking. He wanted to know if local news outlets and the social media are too obsessed and overplaying the issues of race and religion in politics. And how it will destroy the nation if left unchecked.

My answer was yes, the media may be giving undue and unwarranted coverage on the race-baiting and party hopping politicians who are blatantly misusing these cards in their desperate bid to retain or remain in power.

Overfocusing on politically charged news on race and religion may imply that the media is ignoring more serious issues Malaysian society faces. Or that they could be serving certain agendas.

The media plays a vital role in reporting and discussing the sensitive issues of race and religious differences in a professional manner, leaving emotions aside. While there has been extensive media coverage on the pervasive political feuding and drama over the last one year, there has not been adequate attention given by the media and also our politicians on another serious issue – drug abuse and trafficking.

The official figures on the number of prisoners who are drug offenders is indeed startling, to say the least. Last year, there were about 66,000 inmates in Malaysian prisons, with 56% or 36,960 of them serving time for drug-related offences which do not involve life or death sentences.

If this figure does not jolt you, the amount spent on their upkeep should. Apparently, RM40 a day is needed to maintain each inmate in prison. So, for the drug-related prisoners alone, the government spends RM1.4 million a day or RM44 million a month.

Thus, Malaysia spends a whopping RM540 million annually on these prisoners. This is only the financial side of the drug scourge that the feuding and party hopping politicians seem to be ignoring.

But a far more serious effect than the financial implication of the drug problem is the social cost. What about the pain and heartache the drug offenders cause to their families and society? If this is not enough, the government says that, sadly, 99% of the drug offenders who are released return to their old habit.

And these figures do not include the 130,000-odd drug addicts being held in rehabilitation centres nationwide. If you add the total cost of maintaining this group of drug offenders and drug addicts in our prisons and rehabilitation centres, the government spends another RM1.8 billion on this problem.

So you are talking of more than RM2.3 billion being spent annually on drug-related convicts and drug offenders by taxpayers.

The seriousness of the drug problem was underlined by Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin in January last year when he was the home minister then. After a RM2.4 billion drug haul, he said such activities occurred frequently in the country’s northern region.

“What’s troubling is the trend among children, aged between 12 and 13, who are not only involved in drug abuse but also in drug peddling. Malaysia is like a transit point for drug trafficking, (and) this is not good for us,” he said.

Two months later, Muhyiddin went on to become the prime minister. And I don’t remember him highlighting this serious problem again.

The drug problem has other adverse consequences. For example, there have been reported cases of road accidents caused by drivers of express buses and lorries who have tested positive for drugs.

This issue should be taken seriously even if the number of drivers on drugs is small because our lives are at stake. Besides, too many Malaysians lose their lives due to road accidents.

According to a report last year that quoted official statistics, Malays form the highest number of drug addicts at 66.2%, Chinese 5.8%, Indians 5.7%, Sabah Bumiputeras 3.1% and Sarawak Bumiputeras 0.5%.

Although the majority of drug addicts are Malays, this is a Malaysian problem that needs everyone’s attention, especially that of the feuding lawmakers, who could better spend their energy to help educate Malaysians on the dangers of drug abuse than squabbling with each other.

Or draw up more effective plans and ensure more stringent implementation of the related laws to stop the drugs from flowing into the country.

The porous borders and alleged slack enforcement and even corruption at our entry points involving the multi-billion illegal drug trade are also reasons why it is thriving, making it easy for Malaysians to obtain drugs.

A recent study found that the tendency to use drugs as a coping mechanism against stress is increasing as well with the rise of abusers among younger adults and professional groups in Malaysia. It says college and university students often get involved in drugs due to peer and academic pressures.

Now, this is a terribly unhealthy development. Surely, the drug problem deserves much more attention by our politicians and media than the issue of the “Sugarbook” dating site which certain political parties protested against vehemently.

Other major, pressing problems that are not given the attention they deserve by our politicians and the media include that of the high school dropout rates and declining education standards among all ethnic groups, and rampant gangsterism and high levels of alcohol abuse among Indians.

And of course, the issue of unsettled National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) loans is another huge problem that needs urgent attention.

The total loans given out to more than three million borrowers as of last year stand at RM56 billion. It may have gone up after PTPTN allowed a moratorium on repayments during the Covid-19 pandemic. Strangely, many Malaysians are refusing to repay or are dragging their feet to repay as if it was their inherent right to demand government funding for their education.

The politics of race and religion and, most recently, the indecent party hopping have overshadowed many real, pressing problems that are not being given the due prominence or serious attention by the politicians in power.

Hopefully, the media at least can help provide more adequate and meaningful coverage to these problems. - FMT

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.