Apologise when you are wrong

By R. Nadeswaran, The Sun

THE people of the United Kingdom are going through one of their worse times in recent memory. Huge cuts in spending and that means thousands of job losses – 400,000 alone in the civil service over the next four years. There are cuts to spending on education, defence and even the welfare system. It has been bad news almost every day since Prime Minister David Cameron announced the government’s strategy in balancing its books.

Two weeks ago, news came that art galleries and museums will have their contributions cut and almost immediately came the announcement that public libraries will also face similar cuts in budgets. Even university students whose fees had been protected by a cap of £3,200 a year had their status withdrawn resulting in bloody protests.

Britons find it difficult in accepting these cuts and a cursory glance at the newspapers gives one the impression that the coalition government has shot itself in the foot. Although the prime minister and his cabinet colleagues faced the wrath for the decision and its justification for the cuts, a bland statement from one of the government advisers cost him his job.

Lord Young, the prime minister’s enterprise adviser, remarked that most Britons had “never had it so good” despite the “so-called recession”. He told the Daily Telegraph that the Bank of England’s decision to cut the base rates to 0.5% meant many homeowners were better off. He suggested the government’s cuts, outlined in last month’s Spending Review and totalling more than £80 billon over four years, would just take state spending levels back to what they were in 2007 – a time, he said, when people were “not short of money”.

The reactions to such a stand came fast and furious. Politicians from both sides of the divide were quick in condemning Lord Young. Although he apologised to Cameron, he couldn’t accept the remarks and described them as “offensive”. His spokesman said the prime minister “believes, at this difficult time, politicians need to be careful with their choice of words – these words are as offensive as they are inaccurate”. (emphasis is the writer’s).

What have these innocuous words got to do with us Malaysians? Very much. Often, we have politicians shooting themselves not only in the foot but in the head by making all kinds of offensive remarks and they do not want to take responsibility for their gaffes. From “si-sepet” and “si-botol” to “pendatang” and “less patriotic”, we have heard them all.

And yet, the makers of these statements do not want to take responsibility for the words that came from their mouths. And their leaders’ inability or failure to censure them, gives the impression that many of them have been given a carte blanche to do and say whatever they want.

Even when they are cornered, they refuse to accept that they had been wrong and often come out with this statement – I am sorry if it caused any offence. Simple logic and common sense will tell you that people are causing a furore because the remarks offended them. So, why this talk of “if it caused any offence”?

We pride ourselves as we follow democratic principles based on the Westminster system, but yet, the system is followed selectively as and when it is acceptable to certain parties. When was the last time someone resigned from his job for taking responsibility for shortcomings by officials or departments under his purview? When was the last time someone came out and said: “I am truly sorry for those words. I apologise and withdraw them whole-heartedly”?

We can’t expect such behaviour in Malaysia because we do not have the culture of being accountable for our actions. Often, statements are made for political expediency and in some cases for personal pride and one-upmanship.

Has the time come for our elected representatives to show us the way? If they had failed and moved away from the principles they campaigned on, shouldn’t they quit honourably? That would be the norm, but politicians being politicians will refuse to give up power and fame, and some are willing to sell their principles for them.

By the way, it was not just the prime minister’s aide who quit over his remarks – even the private sector had a major victim. The vice-chairman of Babock International, the company which is building two new aircraft carriers for the Royal Navy had to go too. He told the Daily Telegraph that the “building programme is a disaster and will make Britain a laughing stock”.

Call such acts of resignations “trait” or “British culture” but the basic principle is that if you put your foot in the mouth, then there’s nothing else to do but to pay the price. Will this ever be adopted as a principle in our blessed country? High hopes.