Perhaps Zahid is right?

ARCHIVES 2010

By admin-s On Nov 19, 2010

By RK Anand (FMT)

True patriotism hates injustice in its own land more than anywhere else (Clarence Darrow). This is perhaps a dangerous path to tread. But what if Defence Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has a point?

Insinuating that some races are less patriotic may not have been the most politically savviest thing to do in public, especially when his boss is working around-the-clock to market his 1Malayia magic pill to induce colour-blindness.

But then again, such disclosures hardly come as a surprise in a nation that has street lights brighter than many of its politicians.

And so the guns are trained on Zahid for suggesting that the low number of non-Malays in the armed forces may simply be a case of them being less enamoured by the uniform compared to the Malays.

Or in other words, they are not all that willing to shed their blood for this nation.

Even if Zahid is right, the pertinent question is why have the non-Malays become less patriotic? Is it perhaps because their motherland openly favours one child over the other?

No, this is not about that taboo subject of championing equality of the races.

In Malaysia, the special privileges of the Malays are enshrined in the Federal Constitution and this must be respected. Questioning it runs foul of the law and the perpetrator will be accused of sowing seeds of discord.

There will be a litany of police reports, street protests, bullets in the mail, a swift editorial in a certain Malay daily, and perhaps, even an effigy torched.

So in order not to waste time and taxpayers’ money, this sacrosanct issue is best skimmed off the surface.

‘Us versus Them’

While the prime minister tirelessly promotes the idea of oneness, there are some however who never tire of harping on the two-ness of things, constantly reminding the non-Malays that they are mere guests and should therefore behave and not question the house rules.

These politicians and racial supremacists have fanned the “Us versus Them” notion to the point that it has become almost impossible for Malaysians to fight on the same team, unless there are monetary rewards in store.