Shhhh! Please keep quiet, don’t make political noise – it’s our New Year wish

 

THERE is a long list of New Year wishes for Malaysia but most of them might not see the new dawn.

However, if there is one wish that takes top spot in the laundry list, it is one that we all cherish because if it materialises, then there will be lasting peace in our homeland.

What is it? Stop the noise pollution! No, it’s not the noise originating from machines, transportation, construction or from industries sitting next to residential areas.

It’s not the jarring disco music blaring from night clubs near to your house or rock concerts that can torture your ears.

All these types of disturbing sound – disruptive to our daily life – can be minimised or controlled to some extent. Noise that is harmful can be managed or curbed with the passage of legislation that protects the environment.

No, we are not concerned with this kind of environmental noise pollution. We want to stop the other bigger din – political noise.

‘Inflaming passions’

But how do you stop this noise? The words that come out of the mouth can be more damaging than the hot blast from the furnace. That’s how dangerous this noise is.

We have been bombarded with so many speeches by politicians the past one year that it’s so difficult to discern truth from falsehood.

You know, all these people are past masters at manipulating any issues to their advantage but it always comes at a great cost to peace and harmony.

They behave like demagogues only interested in inflaming passions without nary a thought for the adverse consequences their words can have on the people of many faiths and cultures.

There are many of them who have hogged the limelight and became instant heroes hailed by their ethnic community.

We will not name any of them but will lump them all together – young, old and the ancient – under the category of troublemakers who have no qualms about pouring more fuel to make matters worse.

So, how do we bring all these firebrands under control? You cannot plaster their mouths. You cannot introduce laws to curb their freedom of speech.

You cannot compel them to read only prepared innocuous scripts. As politicians, they have the licence to open and shut their mouths as they please which can be very annoying and even injurious.

‘Rabble-rousing speeches’

We have seen how much harm their verbal attacks had been, especially when they spiced up their thoughts with racial and religious overtones. Once the words spilled out, the ensuing firestorm raised had caused so much resentment.

Most of the time, politicians tend to think their one and only duty is to get the people to sit up and react in anger to their rabble-rousing speeches without the benefit of level-headed thinking.

So, how do we tame them? For sure, these loudmouths will be making more noise this new year with all throttles opened up to raise as much hell as possible on issues centred mainly on race and religion.

You can close your ears or move away from the acoustic range but you still simply cannot escape from getting hit by stray words.

Can we make our New Year wish – stop making political noise – come true? Will the “guns” – the mouths – fall silent so that the country can move on with more important affairs of the state?

Just imagine some of the benefits that will follow if all is quiet on the political front:

• Ordinary people will go about their daily tasks without having to listen to hate speeches;
• Citizens of all faiths will respect each other’s belief without being labelled “kafir” (infidels);
• No more politically-motivated street protests that can endanger national security;
• No more strident orations about toppling the government;
• No more news about the exploits of heroes instigating boycott of businesses or besieging defenceless elderly people over petty issues; and, best of all,
• All government leaders can chart the destiny of the nation in real concrete terms without being distracted by political rhetoric.

These are all achievable objectives but going by the ruckus politicians made last year, especially those on the opposite side of the aisle, they will continue to raise the decibel to ring in the new year.

Our 2026 New Year wish of quiet nights and fruitful days might turn out to be wishful thinking as long as the political animals keep barking incessantly on issues guaranteed to make them stars – or crooks. 

Phlip Rodrigues is a retired journalist.

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

- Focus Malaysia