How many times can we pretend we can’t see?

 

From Clement Stanley

Bob Dylan’s classic song “Blowing in the Wind” has a line that goes, “How many times can a man turn his head and pretend that he just doesn’t see?”

It could very well have been an observation of people lacking the courage to see the truth for what it is.

For some who choose to do so, it is a safe thing to do. For others, it might just be a case of being apathetic and nonchalant towards the situation we find ourselves in.

To see the truth takes courage.

When the chairman of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s advisory board called for a press conference to clear its much-maligned chief commissioner Azam Baki of any wrongdoing in the trading of shares, his fellow board members distanced themselves from that press conference, stating that it was his personal view.

He subsequently called for another press conference to criticise his board members for what they did.

But the chairman left the room immediately after that, thus denying members of the press the opportunity to engage him in a question and answer session. This certainly was not a brave thing to do. He could have engaged the press if he wanted to.

His fellow board members could have quit en bloc if they felt the chairman had overstepped his boundaries and embarrassed them. But they chose not to do so, although it would have been the brave thing to do.

Azam was brave enough to openly declare that he had allowed his brother to use his account to trade in shares that were worth millions of ringgit.

According to most legal practitioners that itself is an offence. In the past, there were cases of people being charged for doing exactly the same thing.

But the Securities Commission has decided that in their investigations, the outcome was “inconclusive”. While one was brave enough to state openly that he allowed his brother to use his trading account, the other has left everyone in a state of confusion.

Was this a brave thing to do? It might be. It might not be. But if an offence has been committed, you would know the right thing to do. Your conscience will tell you that.

If somebody tells you to simply accept the explanation given by the authority concerned then you need to rerun the line in Dylan’s song that asks – How many times can a man turn his head and pretend that he just doesn’t see?

Somebody once said that it’s better to be a tiger for a year than a turtle for the rest of your life. - FMT

Clement Stanley is an FMT reader.

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