BE VERY CAREFUL NON-MALAYS, UNPRECEDENTED RACE-BASHING ON THE CARDS AS GE14 NEARS: EVEN THE OPPOSITION WILL BETRAY YOU FOR MALAY VOTES

In Malaysia this is what frequently happens, both sides of the political divide deal blow-to-blow accounts accusing each other of stoking racial tensions, while the ‘rakyat’ watch in quiet apprehension when in actual fact and reality there is hardly any racial friction between the major races of the country.

This therefore raises the staggering question: “Where actually is the racial tension or flare up coming from?”

The fact of the matter, upon research and investigation, is that the supposed racial tension is the result of the figment of imagination of politicians from both sides of the divide.

Politicians, be they from the ruling coalition of Barisan Nasional (BN) or from the opposing divide of Pakatan Harapan (PH), are usually the culprits playing with the race card.

Malaysian politicians bicker and back-bite over the most trivial of circumstances and it is usually racial problems that they blow out of proportion.

This is why the dirty practice of using the race card to earn favor with segments of the population must stop, it must cease immediately as playing with fire can trigger off a real situation to arise such as the May 13, 1969 race riots.

Politicians must be held to be more responsible, since the race relations on the ground is at healthy, acceptable levels, they must not stir or cause trouble or be ‘agent provocateurs’ to cause a tragedy to occur in this generally peaceful and tolerant country.

Reinventing politics

It is time for Malaysian politicians to draw level with the present era of politics and turn away or discard the old nature politics of using race and religion to stir up the masses.

Between the two opposing sides of the political divide, this is especially true of the ruling coalition of BN. They appear to be caught in a time warp and have failed to realize that the nation and people have changed drastically over the last decade or so.

The reason for this is the better education that Malaysians have received making them more informed and enlightened and this is the reason why most urban people have lost faith and confidence in the race game of UMNO.

UMNO, and its splinter faction of Bersatu, under the leadership of former prime minister Mahathir Mohammad and Muhyiddin Yassin, are both guilty of playing racist politics.

This is why both these Malay political parties are viewed with disdain by right-thinking Malays who believe that PKR and Amanah and even DAP offer more healthier political options.

The days of the old world politics of UMNO, Bersatu and Parti PAS are numbered and this is why there is a need for politicians of all stripes to banish the idea forever of playing the race card.

Politics of the future

In the near to distant future, what Malaysians are about to witness is a major paradigm shift from the old world politics of playing with the race card to a future of being blind to color and creed.

This is because there are many indications on the ground that Malaysians of all walks of life are sick and tired and fed-up of the old world politics of playing the race and religion cards by politicians when there is no such thing actually of any racial threat posed by any race.

This scare-mongering has been played so often, especially by BN politicians, that Malaysians no longer blink an eye at the possibility of racial strife in this country.

On the contrary, the fact is Malaysians highly value and cherish the camaraderie that has developed among the races and it is really dirty politics to even suggest that there is racial tension and friction among the races.

This is why it is high time that Malaysians rise up and smack politicians who play with the race and religion cards to divide and rule the people for their own personal benefit.

The truth is Malaysians have come a long way to work hard to iron out racial and religious issues and while there is still a lot of work to be done, in all fairness it must be stated that the nation has come a long way since Merdeka or Independence from the British in 1957.

All these gains made by the ‘rakyat’ is highly-prized and valued and cherished and this is why politicians must learn once and for all never to raise racial and religious issues, and especially not to exaggerate or worsen a situation in this country just for their own benefit.

Christopher Fernandez/MAILBAG