by:
Adrian Lim Chee En
AN OPEN LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Starting next
wednesday, a 6 minutes clip comprising of Negaraku and 2 other Merdeka Day
songs will be played before any movies in the cinema starts, whether it be GSC,
MBO, Cathay, or any other cinemas. Action will be taken against anyone found
disrespecting the national anthem. Mind you, disrespecting includes texting,
chit chatting, and remaining seated during the 6 minutes.
I
can see the government's noble intention. It certainly creates the Merdeka Day
mood and atmosphere, but then, how far can patriotism be instilled through this
practise? I suggest the government do a research, and be clean and honest with
the answer. Take US and England as an example. Why are proud of their flag,
their country and their national anthem?
See,
in these countries, it's a culture, whether they sing the national anthem or
not, they feel proud of their country. You can't force the people to be proud
of something they find "not right". 51% of Malaysians who voted for
Pakatan Rakyat are sick of the mess in this country. You can't expect these
people to be proud of the country after singing the national anthem,
considering their despise towards the mess.
Just
look at the corruption indexes spearheaded by the police, government officials
and ministers. Businesses lose out because of corruption. Corruption becomes
the driving force in contracts and tenders, not incentives to improve and
compete. Most high ranking officials in the agencies either don't work,
or work slowly when there's no under table money. Government rely on handouts
and cash to win elections.
Look
at escalating crime rates. Burglars carrying out their activities rampantly.
Theft is on the rise. And mind you, this does not only happen to normal
civilians, even Ministers, police chiefs, the deputy prime minister, Menteri
Besars, and Tan Sris can be robbed.
These
high ranking personnels who have CCTVs and security guards at their home are
not even spared. Wild wild west shooting style everywhere. There has been at
least 8 in the past 2 months. I did not pluck these figures from the sky, these
were reported in the news.
Gangsters,
businessmen, NGOs and even corporate leaders, you name it. The recently
concluded Altantuya case also raised much questions. No answers as to how she
entered the country, get shot twice and then get exploded. Tech Beng Hock,
under dubious circumstances, court judgement was an open verdict. So how safe
do you feel in Malaysia? If it is still hard to comprehend, just try walking
through the streets of Sinsuran or Kampung Air at 11pm.
The
rising cost of living. Yes this happens everywhere in the world, but that
should not be an excuse to allow the continuation of inflation. Statistics by
the World Bank showed that Malaysia is one of the leading countries in terms of
rising cost of living. Consumers are losing out, because their spending power
is becoming weaker and weaker. On on the other hand, government politicians are
spending like there is no tomorrow. Millions of ringgits of soft loans are
given out as if it were their own pocket money. Corporate and conglomerates
with political connections are forever expanding and making billions.
Religious
tensions caused by monkey politicians who want to score cheap political points.
Where is the religious tolerance that Najib preached to the Arab world? The
likes of Ibrahim Ali, forever indispensable to UMNO and untouchable by the
authorities despite creating hatred against other religions. So much so for
1Malaysia?
Racism
championed by right wing groups and irresponsible parties. Yet again, where is
1Malaysia? 2 bloggers who posted a picture of a pork dish initially denied bail
by the court. A politician, who mocked the Indians, got away without being
charged. Ibrahim Ali who suggested burning bibles with the Allah word, got away
scotch free.
Even
the PM himself, blamed his government's loss on the Chinese. The next day,
Utusan ran a headline asking "Apa lagi Cina Mahu?" Teachers asking
students to go back to China or India. What happened to these perpetrators?
Where is the consistency in the charges and disciplinary actions?
Flip
flop education policies by the forever problematic education ministers. They
say youths are the future of the nation, and yes I agree. Parents are
responsible at home, whereas at school, the education system plays an important
and fundamental role in shaping tomorrow's society.
Few
years back we witnessed a U-turn decision with regards to the teaching of
science and maths. Much resources were invested in preparing English to be used
as the medium for teaching science and maths, few years later, the policy was
abolished.
From
what many critics see, the respective minister, in order to gain political
mileage, is suggesting that he is prepared to use students and teachers as his
political pawns. Now, we see them trying to make Islamic civilisation a
compulsory subject for University students.
The
worst part is, Merdeka is around the corner, yet many still disregard the fact that
Malaysia is 50 years old, and not 56 years old. Even politicians from both ends
cannot decide where do they stand and try to avoid making a stand. History
tells you that Malaya gained independence in 1957, whereas Sabah and Sarawak
agreed to join Malaya to form Malaysia in 1963. So Malaysia is in fact 50 years
old, unless your definition of Malaysia does not include the two resource rich
states East Malaysian states. You cannot change history, can you?
So
tell me, will singing the national anthem solve all these problems? Yes, I will
stand for the six minutes because I love my country, but I wish that as I stand
and sing, I can be proud of what my country has achieved. I want to feel proud
of the country, the system, and achievements other countries do not have. But
will that happen in the near future? As I have always shared with my friends,
at this point in time, "I love my country, but not the system".
-Adrian Lim Chee En is currently a
first year law student based in Kuala Lumpur. He takes an interest in issues
concerning the country and loves food photography. Despite being far from his
hometown Sabah, his love for the state has never withered. He dreams of seeing
Sabah be on equal footing as West Malaysia, and hopes to see Malaysians progressing
and coming together as one without being divided by race and religion.(The Author
opinion is not on behalf of Sabahkini.net view's.)
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