After 65 years, is this the Malaysia we dreamt off?

 

It’s the day after our 65th Independence Day, and we should all be happy, right?

When I was 16 and 17, for two consecutive years, I was selected by my school to join in the Merdeka Day parade in Padang Kota in Penang. At that age, it was terribly exciting to be part of this parade.

I missed school happily for a few days to attend the rehearsals and on the day itself, it was quite a jubilant occasion. To walk past the governor of Penang, chief minister and other leaders with our heads held high was exhilarating, even though by 9am, the heat in Padang Kota was scorching.

Our Independence Day commemorates the magnificent occasion of our colonial masters finally returning our land to us. We who lived here were its rightful owners, and it was the day we took charge of our own destiny as a nation.

Who can forget that our first prime minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra al-Haj, said “I boasted that I was the happiest prime minister in the world, and that was because the people were happy,” then.

Today though, Merdeka Day doesn’t seem to have the same allure and magnetism for many of us. Sixty five years after Tunku immortalised those words, are Malaysians, as a people, happy?

There is a section of the population that is quite relieved that our erstwhile prime minister, who was at the pinnacle of the largest kleptocracy scandal the world has ever seen, is now finally behind bars in prison. And this, instead of parading around the country as though he was a saviour or liberator of the people.

But even in his incarceration, there is a tinge of melancholy. How could we, as a people, have allowed this kind of fraud at the highest echelons of our government to take place right under our noses? Yes, he got what he deserved, yet I cannot help but feel that as a nation we failed.

All the checks, measures and balances that are supposed to safeguard the citizens, were simply ignored and also run roughshod over. It is a veritable circus today with everyone pointing fingers at someone else.

The reaction by his sycophants and those who are shivering in their pants about their own legal troubles for being part of this scam, is equally revealing. In a massive show of support, our former prime minister’s followers gathered and made all sorts of ludicrous demands.

Some of these demands sounded downright illegal.

It’s like these people haven’t learnt. If we do not, as a nation, close ranks, clean up our act, and figure out rationally how we can circumvent this type of abuses of power from happening again, it will just continue.

How to clean up when there is a very loud and vociferous section of the citizenry who still delude themselves into thinking that he is innocent?

So, is Malaysia a happy place now? Is it a truly happy place to live and make a living? Is it a country filled with hard work and glad hearts, like Tunku said?

Here is the painful reality.

There are parts of our country, especially in the hinterlands of East Malaysia, where there is no clean water and guaranteed electricity supply. While some parts of the nation have seen unbridled development, the disparity of growth is obvious.

It is an open secret that our country’s education system has polarised the population by race and religion. Our education curricula at all levels have been infused with so much religious and ethnic dogma. How can we then expect our children to live together harmoniously in a multi-ethnic society?

It is common knowledge that corruption is still rampant. And, notwithstanding the nonsensical and racist statement from a revered political figure who said that “…non-Muslims and non-Bumiputeras are at the root of corruption”, the main culprits seem to be those in power.

Every week, it seems like a new corruption scandal is unearthed.

But most significantly, the biggest indicator about the state of our nation is the reality that many parents, especially those with financial means, are encouraging their children to seek opportunities outside Malaysia.

While they might make a song and dance about coming ‘home’ every year or every other year, and post glorious photos on social media and wax lyrical about “…there’s no place like Malaysia”, they will all swiftly pack their bags at the end of their vacation and head back to their chosen destination with the belief that life there is more merit-based than here.

Political vexations have intensified. Our politicians have failed to rescue the nation from trouble. And, we have a government, which doesn’t actually represent the will of the people. I think this much, we can all agree on.

Is this current Malaysia the nation that our forefathers fought for? When exactly is the right time to stand-up against racial and religious bigotry? And when should we speak for equality for all?

As we celebrate 65 years of independence, there really isn’t much to be happy about, is there? - FMT

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