A friend passed away three days ago, however two days earlier we had a long discussion over a couple of teh-tarik about the political issues in Malaysia as he was in the know on these matters as far as I was concerned. I voiced out my concern about who or what to vote for in the upcoming election which will most probably take place early next year. The two main choices he said being the ruling Barisan Nasional party under the PM and the Opposition party, The party Keadilan Raayat under Anwar Ibrahim, it is a choice between the "Iblis and the Shaitan" according to him.But one has to choose as they are the ones in the helm at present and abysmal as it may seem Malaysians are stuck with these two opposing parties as there is no others to stand up against them.It is our civic duty to vote and vote we must to make a difference for the future of this country and for the benefit of our children and theirs.
As much as I abhor politics and politicians I am duty bound to at least think and let my thoughts be heard on the matter and in the process share what the majority of my friends and those i had talked to on the matter had to say only as in conversations as they are not writers.Hence i am writing this piece simply because i feel the need to serve my country in my own small way by expressing my own personal views based upon those of others'. This is in no way meant to criticize or condemn any one party or person, it is a neutral reflection of one Malaysian.
A few years ago i came upon an article in the Internet entitled; "Zaid Ibrahim's Keynote Address at The Oxbridge Malaysia Dinner." dated 29th. Jul. 09. I was so impressed with the message that I had made a copy of it and still have it on file from which I am going to use as my reference for what I have to say to my fellow Malaysians as it says in a better way than i can ever express my own thoughts.
"Today I am persuaded by the argument that for Malaysia to have
democracy
and the Rule of Law, we must have a new government; a viable
inclusive
government of the people; a government for all Malaysians."
This is what all of us Malaysians want or at least desire for if our future is to be secured in a more concrete and stabilized manner, we have to make a commitment towards making a change that is most compelling and self sacrificing within our own individual minds to create an impact that would echo itself into the future.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this country was established as a
secular
multicultural and multi-religious democracy a’la the
Westminster
model. The Constitution however provides for a special position
for
the Malays and natives of Sabah and Sarawak. They
unfortunately
omitted to include the Orang Asli in this special category,
although
they were naturally the first original inhabitants of this
country.
All they got was a Jabatan Orang Asli. The special provisions
for
Bumiputras under Article 153 do not make them more special than
other
citizens, for the fighters of independence did not envisage
an
Orwellian society where some are more equal than others. The
acceptance
of equality of rights as citizens is central to the success
of our Malaysian
journey."
As a lawyer who at one time created the largest law firm in the country, none can lay claim to better champion the cause and the constitution of this country, Zaid in his unbiased mind saw the truth that would set this country free from the bondage of dependency in whatever form it may take and in this case he advocated the need for the Malays to liberate themselves from depending on the government to subsidize their future.If and when every Malay can say to himself i do not need the government to help me to live my life there is freedom from bondage, from being exploited and manipulated by the powers that be.Any party that claims to champion for any one single race in this country should be viewed with caution and that goes to the Indians and the Chinese as well as the rest of the minority groups in this country; there should never be a minority group in Malaysia.
"When the Prime Minister announced his ‘1Malaysia’ slogan, I asked if
that
meant he would make a declaration that all Malaysians are equal.
The answer
was not forthcoming till today. All he said was rights must
be understood in
the context of responsibilities. Another fuzzy reply.
When critics asked if
‘1Malaysia’ is an affirmation of the rights of
ALL the citizens under the
Constitution, an affirmation of the
multicultural and multi-religious nature
of our country; and that the
principles of Rukun Negara will continue to be
the mainstay of our
society. My detractors say that my views are fodder for
the egos and
insecurities of those who detest the constitutional position of
the
Malays. They say I work too hard at being a Malaysian and by doing
so,
have forgotten my roots and responsibilities to the Malays. And
that
no right thinking Malay, who truly understands what is at stake,
would
ever support me. I know my heritage. I know my humble beginnings. "
As Malaysians we do, we all know and are proud of our own heritage we don't ask who we are we know who we are. Whatever our past maybe, wherever our forefathers may have hailed from we cannot escape our past, however it is our future that is in jeopardy, that is hanging in a balance and our past is keeping us from moving forward, we need to let go. We need to liberate our minds from this fear of the future and what it holds for us regardless of our past history. It is who we are today that will decide who we will be tomorrow not who we were before.As I mentioned before in this effort a whole lot of self sacrifice has to be made from each and everyone of us and this includes educating those who are ignorant in this matter for they are the ones who will fall victims to those who manipulate our situation for their self serving agendas. We have to act as One, not a Malay Malaysian or a Chinese or Indian Malaysian and so on but as true Malaysians and this has to happen yesterday.Only then can we develop the idea of a shared and common nationhood.
"A new united Malaysia can only come true when UMNO changes and
abandons
racial politics and the politics of racial hegemony. Or when
the Malays can
be made to understand that patronage, authoritarianism
and nationalist
extremism, which underpins UMNO’s style of leadership,
does more harm to the
community and the country than good. That Malays
themselves must break from
the shackles of narrow nationalism so that
they may realise
self-actualisation and emancipation. The first is
difficult to achieve but I
take it as my responsibility to try and
achieve the second."
The question is why are Malays not confident in breaking the shackles that is beholding them to the government? Most of my Malay friends and relatives expresses fears of economic loses to the Chinese or not being able to compete with them and so on. How much of theses is true or what is the reality of it? Are the Malaysian Chinese out to sideline the Malays through economic squeeze? Only they can answer this and if it is a positive reply then they too will have to think and start looking into deeply why this country will never rise above what it is today.It is said that we cannot change the world but we can change our selves, our way of looking at the world to help make the change.
"UMNO – have almost abandoned the idea of a shared and
common
nationhood. They believe that for so long as the MCA and the
MIC
remain with them as partners of convenience; that is sufficient
to
build a nation. They think it’s sufficient to forge a new nation
by
electoral arrangements. The MCA and the MIC also think it’s
sufficient
for nationhood if they remain business partners of UMNO."
Tod divide and rule is the most common tool of politics and politicians all over and this division can even exist among alliances so long as each benefits from the share of power. This would be fine if those holding the reins of power are beyond corruption and the abuse of power itself. No man and no nation for that matter is free from the influences of Greed, Hate and Ignorance, the three illnesses that man suffers from from the beginning of time. It is the small people, the lay man, the farmers and fishermen, the mechanic and bus drivers that are the victims as their trust, their faith and their hopes are being taken advantage of by those who are unscrupulous and without conscience declaring themselves leaders. It is these so called leaders that we have to weed off from ever sitting in the seats of power to govern this nation and this can only be done through our awakening to the real issues that we as Malaysians need to address and that is Ourselves!
Who are we? What is a true Malaysian? What would it take to become one? For how long can we live in denial or our real identity while we allow others to take advantage of our segregation, our clinging on to our past and the heritage of our forefathers? Am I Malay first Malaysian second? Chinese first Malaysian second? Or Indian first....till when? For so long as we are divided along these racial ethnic lines that is how long we will be dependent on those who live off human illnesses and weaknesses. It is only through our unified selfless sacrifice can we win for this nation her glory and in the process eliminate the need to choose between the Devil and the Deep.
"The ultimate price that the country suffers from the present
political
culture is that the Malays and non-Malays will continue to be
denied a
sense of ownership of Malaysia’s nation-building journey. And
instead
of becoming partners in this voyage to mature nationhood,
they
continue to bicker and remain suspicious and distrustful of
one
another. Because of this segregation, the government is unable to
set
a new direction for the country.. Because of racial polarisation,
the
people are not ready to accept a multi-racial dimension for
this
country. As a result, we are not able to enact or even
discuss
comprehensive national policies whether it is regarding the
police,
education or judicial and civil service reforms. The distrust of
the
communities will prevent objective appraisals and solutions to
the
problems. Ethnic interests take precedence over national
interests.
National interests become a strange and fearful concept. And
there
will continue to be a brain drain of Malaysian talents who would
have
decided that they would rather make their homes elsewhere. This is
a
high price that the country can ill-afford to pay given the
increasingly
challenging global outlook."
Quotes from Keynote Address at Oxbridge Dinner Dialogue
by Zaid Ibrahim
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