Heroes cast into the shadows by Covid-19 crisis

 

The Covid-19 numbers appear to be depressing although they have somehow come down over the past few days. It was frighteningly high a couple of weeks ago and with the movement control order (MCO) in full force (maybe not full), there was just too much bad news, made worse by the high number of deaths.

In the midst of the pandemic and the deluge of negative social media clips and messages, we may have overlooked many heart-warming tales.

One that stands out is the story of how our air force flyboys went into action to check the intrusion of Chinese planes; a few struggling delivery boys chose honesty instead of making a quick buck and a brave citizen literally played the role of the ears and eyes of the National Security Council by complaining about the Kedah menteri besar who she thought was violating the MCO 3.0.

There are many more such tales, too many to list here: some of these will suffice to make us remember the huge sacrifices that many make.

Unfortunately, netizens chose to slay the messenger who showed courage in reporting a VIP for alleged violation of SOPs.

Let’s drive home the point to Malaysians that the young Malay woman’s courage and honesty in reporting a Malay leader makes her a true Malaysian champion – but netizens flayed her, using racist tones too.

Our Royal Malaysian Air Force stamped their mark by scrambling its fighter jets when 16 Chinese aircraft intruded into our air space off Labuan, a feat that may have gone unnoticed although the regular naysayers on social media were asking: “Where was our air force?”

One cannot blame them for raising such questions in the absence of details of what happened. Very few seemed to have praise for our flyboys who successfully ensured that the 16 Ilyushin IL-76 and Y-20 transport aircraft belonging to China’s People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) returned the way they came.

Malaysians should understand the constraints faced by the RMAF which cannot go to town with stories like this as no one other than its chief or public relations officer is allowed to talk to the media.

The fighter pilots and crew were ready in their jets, waiting for the go-ahead to confront the Chinese aircraft. The encounter took place near the Beting Patinggi Ali area (Luconia Shoals) of the South China Sea, where China and Malaysia have overlapping territorial claims.

The drama unfolded at 11.53am, when the RMAF radar control centre in Sarawak picked up the presence of “zombies” (unidentified aircraft) heading into Malaysia’s exclusive economic zone. After the central command ascertained that they had breached our air space, with no response to our air control request for identification, the order was given to scramble three Hawk fighter jets.

A military source said they were up in the air within minutes and upon reaching the target area, they established that the 16 planes were Ilyushin IL-76 and Y-20 transport aircraft of the PLAAF which had “crossed this invisible line”.

The RMAF said it carried out all air protocols under the International Civil Aviation Organization and the National Air Defence Strategy to chase the aircraft back the way it came to secure the Malaysian airspace.

Under these protocols, the pilots of the Hawk would have first made eye contact with the IL-76 pilot and jinked its wing to shoo them away. It was indeed an action that all Malaysians should be proud of. After all the flak it received for the missing MH370, this action ought to restore faith in the RMAF.

An offer he just had to refuse

Then there was this food delivery rider, identified only as “Syamil” who turned down an offer of a free motorcycle because he admitted having one. He was using a bicycle because the quota for motorcycle riders for the service was full.

Well, he could have easily accepted the offer but he chose honesty instead, an exemplary action during this difficult time of Covid-19.

RM100 reward that came back

Another tale involves a senior citizen who placed an envelope containing RM100 as “reward” for a delivery rider who went out of his way to make sure her food order reached her.

And guess what? He came back all the way to “return” the envelope thinking that it was a mistake. And until the end, he refused to accept the generous offer.

Although some misdeeds seem to be getting more attention, I would rather believe that good will triumph over evil with these kinds of Malaysians showing the better side of us.

Despite the uncertainty all round, there are many brave and honest people out there doing their bit, which should make us restore our faith in humanity. - FMT

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