Reclaiming the Malaysia we grew up with

My grandfather came to Malaysia in his teens from China. Like many of his contemporaries, he worked hard and was rewarded with a good living in his new home. From his savings as an apprentice carpenter, he opened his own furniture store. My grandfather was grateful and proud that his 14 children could receive a formal education in Malaysia that he never had in China.

My father went to a missionary school where the principal was a fiery-tempered Irishman. He was a mischievous boy who somehow became a King Scout. My father was probably one of the youngest teachers in the country. He taught Art and English. He was well-liked in school. To this day, his former students still address him as “Cikgu”.

I went to the same school that my father went. The school was old and “creaky” but we had great teachers. My classmates consisted of boys whose first language ranged from English, Mandarin and Malay to Tamil.

My father did not remain a teacher for long. He has always harboured an ambition to be an entrepreneur. After several business failures, he founded a manufacturing company that did quite well. Well enough that he could afford to send his children to the UK for their tertiary education.

During my time in the UK, I was surprised that Malaysian students from national schools generally fared better than their English counterparts. My British lecturers and professors openly praised Malaysian students, marvelling at our mastery of the English language, Science and Mathematics.

We were upstaging our former colonial masters! Malaysia was an emerging economic powerhouse; “Malaysia Boleh” became a national slogan and the future looked bright for young Malaysians like me then.

Being a Malaysian was a source of pride, at home and when on foreign soil. Fast forward 20 years to today and that sentiment, that pride, is very much diminished.

Descendants of migrants who know of no other home apart from Malaysia are constantly reminded of their ancestry. What was once the source of our strength and attraction- the diversity of race and culture - has become our number one distraction.

Instead of focusing on growing the national cake so that all Malaysians can enjoy a larger slice, we have half-baked politicians stoking the fears of the electorate, casting suspicions among fellow Malaysians.

We waste far too much time fighting against imaginary enemies within when the real competition lies beyond our borders, causing Malaysia to fall far below its true global potential.

The standard of our schools today is a pale shadow of its former self. In the guise of patriotism, we turn away from learning about the world, we sideline English and political propaganda seeps into the classrooms.

Now, our kids graduate from schools lacking the necessary skills to compete globally.

What was once a unifying factor, schools now reflect the divisiveness of our nation. National schools are no longer the first choice for most Malaysians. Chinese and Indian parents prefer to send their kids to vernaculars schools while private schools mushroom to fulfil the demand for quality education despite the steep fees.

The local education system that once gave us multilingualism, multiculturalism and produced outstanding students for almost free of charge is now in a mess with no clear direction.

If Malaysia can be imagined as a person- then this person is no longer the clean-faced, confident young man he once was. In his late sixties, he is balding, obese, albeit wealthier. He is proud of his pot belly as he believes it to be a sign of his prosperity.

His name is all over the news recently but for the wrong reasons. Financial scandals swirl around him but he shrugs it off as attacks by jealous rivals.

He proudly proclaims to his friends that he will be moving from the ranks of the merely-rich to the super-rich as he shows off his gleaming building bearing his name, but neglects to reveal he is taking on huge debts to finance his lavish lifestyle.

This man refuses to acknowledge that he is broken inside. He has given up his integrity, family bonds and once cherished values to pursue wealth and fame.

Like the man, this nation of ours is losing its soul. The country is in desperate need of a leadership that can strengthen the bond between all Malaysians instead of tearing it apart.

The country needs leaders with integrity whose primary interests are the welfare of the people and not the size of their personal bank accounts. The country needs elected representatives that employ more of their brains rather than their fists.

We need to save the institutions that once stood tall to protect the people, but are now crumbling under the weight of incompetence and corruption.

If we fail to arrest this decline, there is a good chance that to our children, our memories of a paradise that was once Malaysia will just be a figment of their imagination. We owe it to them to leave behind a Malaysia that they will grow up in with pride, and that accords them the same opportunities that we have had.

Our job as parents is to give our children the best future possible. To do that, we have to ensure that the best of this country lies in its future, not in its past.

Hopefully, there is still time to reclaim the Malaysia we know. The urgency to save the Malaysia that we grew up with has never been greater. -Mkini