1Malaysia
Imagine the disbelief and disappointment in the faces of the Rakyat, that our government is non-committal enough to back this 1Malaysia policy. So it is again back to square one. There will be Malaysian Malays and Malaysian Chinese and Malaysian Indians and Malaysian others. Nothing has changed, and no one else is interested anymore.
By Capt. Iskandar Dzulkarnain
To the layman, 95 percent of Malaysians will not be able to give you an accurate answer as to what 1Malaysia is. But if you ask them what they think 1Malaysia really is, their interpretation will be that it means a united race of Malaysians. Isn’t it what it really means?
Why all the flowery talk of tolerance and acceptance? Since independence Malaysians have always taken it for granted that we are Malaysians. Nothing less and nothing more! Nobody questioned the fact that we are all equal citizens of this country. When we are overseas, when asked the question, we always say we are a Malaysian and not a Malaysian Malay or Malaysian Chinese or Malaysian Indian or Malaysian Bumiputra!!
During our schooldays, we never failed to sing NegaraKu. And we mixed among the Chinese and Indians, played and quarrelled in all innocence. Not once had our teachers tried to differentiate us, and we felt perfectly at ease. Now, after all these years, the constant reminders of racial differences keep staring at us in the eye. If we stop to think where this is coming from – all fingers point to our Government.
Every Malaysian born in this country wishes for racial unity and a nation to be proud of. We are tired of being told we are different because we are not!!!
This stupid issue happens to be the easiest to solve. All the Government has to do is to tell the nation that we are all 1Malaysians, and we are all equal, and that we are all brothers and sisters, and that we are all countrymen. There shall be no favouritism, and we are all equal in the eyes of the law. The Police and Judiciary will always protect us from harm. We have total freedom to practise our religion without let or hindrance. If the government is really sincere to help a particular race, just stop publicizing it and go about it quietly fulfilling the quest. Others will support such a just cause to ensure equality among all citizens.
Malaysia has so many outstanding issues left unsolved by the government, and each time it has conveniently swept these issues under the carpet. But 1Malaysia can be the magic broom that will sweep away all these problematic issues. Once 1Malaysia is in place, unity and patriotism will reign. All the social barriers will collapse, and we can then start to repair this country. It is time for all Malaysians to join hands and go forward, and tell the world that this land of opportunity is ours, and we will fight to the end to ensure the Malaysian Flag stands up high. We will shed the invisible shackles that has bound us and prevented us from being a closer neighbour to each other.
But first, the government has to tell itself that there is no such thing as race. We are after all the human race. “Eons ago, the whites love to bathe in milk, that’s why they have white skin. Some humans fell into the Yellow River and have turned yellow ever since. Those that yearned for chocolate became brown. And some stumbled into a pool of oil and forever remained dark”. Just a fairy tale, but we are all humans; and the colour of our skin should not be the factor as to why we are not united. The government has implied that race and religion is a factor why Malaysians cannot be united, or that we are not the true sons of the soil, and that there is a higher breed of humans, similar to the caste system in India or the Aryan Race.
Politicians are chosen by God to administer a nation, and to ensure peace and prosperity. Instead our politicians are running the country into the ground, negating all efforts of the people who have strived to turn Malaysia into a developed country.
The web of corruption, deceit, lies, inequality and blackmail by the administration in power has taken a toll of irreparable damage to the nation. Bullied and chastised, the erosion of basic human rights, a tainted judiciary and a PDRM in disrepute. Undemocratic actions taken against the Opposition for minor offences, but NFA on glaring abuses of corruption. The Rakyat is getting weary of the government and most have given up hope.
The amount of curses and criticism that the Malays endured through such failed Policies like the NEP is really unnecessary. Only a small minority of Bumiputras benefited, or claimed these so called subsidies. Today the NEM looks like a more balanced policy, replacing a failed NEP. The Rakyat is appeased, but not for long, as only the first part of the NEM has been announced. The other half is still under wraps, for whatever reason only God knows. And with 1Malaysia in place, we thought we might see a more united Malaysia.
But on April Fool’s day, we saw the 2 top leaders reaffirming 1st Malay and second 1Malaysian. Although this is really a small matter, as everyone is entitled to their opinion, it came as a shock to Malaysians that our two top leaders are not walking the talk on this new Policy. It shows a glaring non-commitment to 1Malaysia, which many Malaysians have come to accept as an engine of racial unity.
With NGOs like Perkasa being a thorn in the flesh of 1Malaysia, and yet no action seem to be forthcoming from our current administration is really unsettling.
Imagine the disbelief and disappointment in the faces of the Rakyat, that our government is non-committal enough to back this 1Malaysia policy. So it is again back to square one. There will be Malaysian Malays and Malaysian Chinese and Malaysian Indians and Malaysian others. Nothing has changed, and no one else is interested anymore.
If the government had listened to us and played by our rules to ensure a just administration, the Rakyat will not hesitate to continue giving our mandate to BN. Are they so blind to the fact that it is the Rakyat that will ultimately determine their fate?
