Four decades ago, a young man was plucked from obscurity to help the then prime minister, Dr Mahathir Mohamad, change the course of Malaysian politics.
Today, in similar circumstances, another young man is helping to chart Mahathir's course. The young man of the 80s, was Anwar Ibrahim. The new kid on the block is Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman.
Anwar's supporters may think he deserves to be prime minister, but the rakyat is wary, and he is but a distant memory to Mahathir. Once bitten, twice shy.
Syed Saddiq now does Mahathir's bidding. If Syed had any sense, he would be his own man, and realise that true Merdeka can only be achieved when the two Rs (race & religion) are consigned to the dustbin.
The older politicians are only interested in preserving their self-interests, and depressingly the younger politicians are too lazy to read that there was once a time when Malaysia was a homogenous mix.
The majority of us were poorer then, but we were happier. Today, some of us wear religion on our sleeves and the noisy few demand that others, whom they consider to be inferior, bow to their demands.
Loud music from a live band, both sexes happily mingling in the crowd, raucous laughter, copious amounts of silken hair on show, and the inevitable dancing. Men and women play-slap one another, during conversation. These were common scenes at Malay weddings, during my youth. For the more adventurous urbanites, a bar would be set-up in one corner of the house, for those who wished to toast the newlyweds.
Along came Mahathir and his sidekick, Anwar, to out-Islamicise PAS. Their plan? To woo Malay voters. This happened in the early to mid-80s.
Today, in many Malay weddings, female guests are separated from their menfolk. As outward displays of expression are frowned upon, many women react by out-blinging one another. Only the well-to-do city-folk have the confidence to dance at weddings.
Guests bless the new couple, eat and then leave. There is hardly any social interaction and for many, attending weddings is like a penance. There is no fun or gaiety.
At school, we had sleep-overs, shared makan during break, sucked-up to friends, whose mothers were fantastic cooks, to angle an invitation for makan at their homes.
Friends observed religious sensitivities without having to be forcibly reminded. Friendships were forged over one tupperware of Chinese fried rice, and at least six forks. Nasi lemak, rice hoppers, kueh and cakes. Malay, Chinese, Indian and Eurasian. What could be more Malaysian?
Later, in secondary school, the studies did not stop us from making friends with boys in the sixth form. We did not care if our boyfriends were of a different race. We were more afraid that our parents would catch us holding hands, or find out that we had gone to see a film.
We formed our own revision groups, and included Chinese girls who were good at mathematics, and Indian girls whose English was excellent. On the sports fields, and in the swimming pool, we knew who to team up with, to win track and field events and swimming relays.
Then came the Mahathir-Anwar (Mah-War) duo, and the smile faded from our faces. The school curriculum became Mah-War's playing field.
Today, Malay teachers scold Malay pupils for sharing food with their non-Malay friends, during break. Non-Malay students have nowhere to eat during the fasting month, because the canteens are closed. None of this happened during my childhood. Now, Malays in swimming suits or shorts are frowned upon.
Malay children allegedly make a conscious effort to avoid making friends who are non-Malay, and vice versa. Another Malay friend was deeply embarrassed, during a visit to his former classmate's home for Christmas open house. His teenage children refused to shake hands with his friend, and rejected the food and drink.
Some of my non-Malay friends have given up inviting their Malay friends. One said, "It hurts that our decades of friendship had been hijacked by Mahathir's version of a religion."
Make no mistake. Anwar and Mahathir are joined at the hip in their dogged pursuit of their nefarious, divisive policies of 'Race & Religion'.
Yesterday, Mahathir said that it was important to celebrate Merdeka, because we now have a voice unlike colonial times, where "the colonial rulers decided in terms of their own interests, and not ours."
Mahathir is wrong. Our voices are still muted. Politicians still use us to meet their own agendas.
Mahathir is the architect of 21st Century Malaysia. He helped sow the seeds of division.
If he were sincere, he could restore our trust, by deporting the controversial preacher, Zakir Naik (above, left), but he won't. Zakir is a tool, which he, Umno-Baru and PAS will use to do their dirty work. Zakir utters vile incendiary remarks, but Mahathir's, Umno-Baru and PAS' hands appear clean.
Zakir is a guest who has overstayed his welcome. His apology was insincere. He will be turfed out, once he is no longer useful, or when he upstages Mahathir.
The rakyat feels betrayed. After GE-14, Mahathir was "fine" for four months. Today, he has set the pace, Anwar is trying to be relevant (and is failing spectacularly), whilst Syed Saddiq's ego needs massaging.
The 2Rs are now like a runaway train headed for a cliff. Until and unless Team Mahathir reins in the destructive 'race & religion' policies, Malaysia will not discover its true economic and social potential.
The rakyat's role is to keep reminding them.
Syed Saddiq and his dismissive "Let's move on" does nothing to assuage the rakyat's feelings. He should grow up and discover Malaysia's multicultural past, and learn about a time when Merdeka had meaning.
Selamat Hari Merdeka.
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