Let's Not Kid Ourselves

Oh, the sweet euphoria of being caught up in the birth of a new thing.  Many are still adjusting to the winds of change  blowing across Malaysia since May 10 2018 when a motley group of politicians led by, of all people, a 92 year old ex-PM  claimed victory in GE 14, appropriately termed the 'mother' of all elections. Despite his own chequered past, the 'grand old man' turned hero of the hour,  proving to be the successful X-factor capable enough to unify Malaysians across the board  to overwhelmingly vote out a government that had ruled for 3 decades. It reminds me of a question in the Bible -  Can a country be born in a day or a nation be brought forth in a moment? Well,  I guess it's certainly been a long time coming - the birth of a truly 1Malaysia 'baby' which truth be told, hardly anybody really expected.

So now with all that talk about people power, everyone suddenly realizes they are the boss and the government is our servant. And like all bosses, we start telling the servant all the things we think the servant must do. We waste no time putting the servant in its place, when we don't like how this or that duty is being done. Hey, we are the boss after all. From lengthy to-do and not-to-do lists, well-intentioned suggestions to online petitions, we are all so eager to put our finger in to bake up a nice Malaysian 'pie'.  Which is all well and good, since we all have an equal and irrefutable share in the end-product. And we don't want to make the same old mistake of letting 1 'baker' do his own thing and swipe the pie all for himself and his cronies. However it seems to me we  run the danger of having too many bosses simply throwing their weight around, trying to chuck in all kinds of 'ingredients' of their own taste and choosing into the melting pot ; the idiom 'too many cooks spoil the soup' springs to my mind. Or we swing to the other extreme of the pendulum and idol-worship mere man as geniuses, applauding every move that resonates with our own pet ideas/causes.

A couple of days after the historic election, I got a long (anything above a 1 cm scroll on watsapp is long, and this one was at least a 25 cm scroll down) 21-point to-do/not-to-do list on how to be a rakyat of the new Malaysia, 'to make it a better place.' It was posted on 2 different chat-groups I am in (which only serves to make me want to quit being socially connected). It was purportedly sent by Hannah Yeoh (whom if you don't know, means you are either not a Malaysian or really really can't be bothered about politics) , who subsequently issued a statement denying it was from her. Actually, to me at least,  it was pretty obvious it couldn't have been from her, because I am sure she's got many other (more essential) things to do than sit around, penning a 21-pointer list for folks like me.

The 21 points suggested a whole range of ordinary actions that we should be doing - like stand on the left side of escalators, clear your own trays at McD/KFC, use signals when turning/switching lanes whilst driving, stop putting up canopies that block up the whole street when we throw a party in our house, say please, hi, thank you to bus-drivers, cashiers and restaurant-workers, ( I could add more to that one), be punctual, flush toilets, don't smoke in the presence of non-smokers, (I guess by extension then, we can include refrain from eating in front of Muslims who are fasting?) The list ended by saying 'No point having a new government if old habits don't die. Change starts from you...'

The list irked me, not so much because of its length or its 'preach-iness',  but because it was attributed to Hannah Yeoh, since that's an outright lie. Surely we don't need politicians to exhort us to be tolerant, sensitive to and respect other Malaysians who profess different faiths, who engage in different customs and traditions? Does a politician's name carry more 'weight' to turn us into nicer, more polite, considerate and caring folks? Or is it that a politician's words will make us more inclined to sacrifice our precious rights to favor someone else? Why can't we just say it like it should be said, do what we should know what to do, as one Malaysian to another?  Since when do we need to invoke a 'famous' name to justify a stand for responsible decent conduct, Malaysian or not?

Having said that, actually I understand perfectly where the author is coming from. And it's absolutely correct - change starts with the person staring back at us in the mirror.  Instead of just harping on every one of the government's actions, can we be mindful to watch ourselves first - how are we treating others in our attitudes, words and deeds in our daily interactions ?  Perhaps instead of bossing the government around so much, it would do us good to take stock of how we  behave as members of the society we live in. What's the point of arguing about who should be this or that minister,  if we can't do  simple things like stop littering, recycle household waste or take time to report pot-holes and faulty street-lights? Why talk about democracy and equality when we - the bosses - hesitate to employ certain races or refuse to rent out our nice apartments to certain people? All that has got nothing to do with governing the nation, and everything to do with us personally, individually as a citizen of Malaysia. If we can't even do the little things right ourselves, how do we expect the government to do bigger things? It's like I get myself  brand new clothes, but don't bother to bathe when I change into them... I would still stink.

So whilst I laud the post-election freedom that's so refreshing, let's not kid ourselves Malaysia will be a better place just because we have a new government, who should listen to us . Certainly they better do their job well, because we put them up there, and we can fire them if they don't perform, after 5 years.  By all means, contribute new ideas, give feedback, constructive criticism and engage in meaningful discourse. But let's remember  when we elected them to be leaders, we gave them the power and authority to act in good governance. To do their job effectively, they need the freedom we gave them to make decisions, set the direction, implement policies.  If everyone of us want to be leaders to call the shots, there will be no followers. Then all we get is a mass of noisy leaders, all intent on getting their way, because everyone has the right.  The end result is a government which will not be able to function as it's supposed to - because it's too busy having to listen to the bosses, no work gets done.

So, can we - the bosses - let go the reins a bit for the servant  to move, and let the government do its job as it should be done, drawing from the expertise of professionals, mindful of its mandate and responsibilities to deliver on promises made? And we ourselves do what we should be doing on our turf, working together, as co-builders of a new, maturing Malaysia.

Published MMO 20/5/18

Poison or Perfume

What is it about politics that can turn humans into monsters?
Especially during election season.

Okay, I know there's no love lost between opposing camps when it comes down to battling for every vote from a (sometimes very fickle and fussy) populace. It's the time when the public gets wooed with everything thrown into their bucket. Well, almost everything. It used to be just (plain) cash, but now I hear there are offers of Mercedes Benz C200 being bandied around. That's indeed upping the ante a notch. Though if I were the type to sell my soul for a vote, I would take cold hard cash anytime. A car is only a car. What's the use of a Merc if I don't have the cash to pay for its petrol? By the way I am still quite baffled by what actually qualifies as 'buying votes'.

I am sorry but I get rather cynical  when 'suddenly' all sorts of development projects worth billions of ringgit are practically signed, sealed and delivered to remote villages, faraway highlands and lowlands all over Malaysia. Oh yes, I know, I should be glad, at least every 5 years. there is this season of 'suddenly', where new roads, schools, community halls, airports, wi-fi services, and all manner of social amenities are generously dished out for the 'common good.'  It's great, but shouldn't this be the norm instead of once every 5 years?

Anyway, for (selfish, little) me,  is it too much to ask just for everyone to keep public toilets clean and usable? And how about some proper planning before 'donating' ridiculously outsized (and no doubt not cheap), heavy rubbish bins that's so hard for the poor  trash collector to reach into to retrieve all my household garbage? It's bad enough he's got to put up with stink and maggots the whole day, no one sees how back-breaking it must be for him to try to get to that last plastic bag that lies right at the deep bottom of the bin. But who cares anyway. He's  (probably) 'just' another migrant worker. He should be thankful he can eat bread-n-margarine (butter is too expensive) in beautiful Malaysia.

Of course, we Malaysians got bigger things to worry about, like corruption, injustice, traitors and enemies of the nation. Every now and then, we get all uptight about financial scandals, mismanagement of funds, suspicious donations (of the multi-billion ringgit kind), dubious business deals involving public (ie yours and my) money. Somehow the noise gets extra loud in the 'suddenly' season of election campaigning. I have a confession though, nowadays,  I am not sure anymore what is 'fake' and what is truth. It doesn't help that everything - even an opinion - can be 'suddenly' (there's that word again) fake, and subject to criminal investigation.  Of course I stand for justice, truth, righteousness and good governance. But wait a minute, shouldn't this be the norm instead of just 'now and then', or 'suddenly' once every 5 years?

Hey, I am 'anak Malaysia', of course I love my country. Which Malaysian, no matter what our political inclinations, doesn't? We are all patriotic folks. So how is it that 'suddenly', we aren't on the same page of love when it comes to electing a government? Heck, we can't be civil to each other anymore. It upsets me how human decency and respect seems to have flown out of the window altogether in the course of this 'suddenly' season. How is it we can bad-mouth or curse another human being, a fellow Malaysian, no less, simply because we don't like his/her politics? How infantile can we get, throwing paint on or cutting out people's faces on billboards? ...seriously, isn't that  typical 'Ah Long' gangster behavior? Whatever's happened that we can be so out-of-control of our emotions we physically push down people we disagree with? What kind of people are we when in the name of so-called ritual or religion we 'step on'  another human being - even if it's only a paper drawing of that person - and deliberately wish him/her ill? Have we grown so intolerant that we 'crucify' a person who dares to testify about the goodness and the greatness of her God as a dangerous religious fanatic out to destroy other people's faith?

We seem to have confused ideas about what is truly evil. Is the person who siphons off tax-payers' money in public office more 'evil' than the rude one who calls my race 'pendatang' who should 'go home'? How about the  individual who can video-tape a child being bullied, but is not bothered enough to lodge a police report? Is the one recording the incident 'less evil' than the perpetrator of violence? Why is  'watsapping' messages of hate acceptable but not the act of murder?  Suffice to say in our own eyes, we are the only ones right, all others against ie not like/for us are wrong - so 'they' are evil -  they must be overthrown, destroyed, discredited, howsoever whatsoever.  Consciously or unconsciously, we justify our pet beliefs, out of which come our responses and defenses. Jesus puts His finger right on our human hearts when He admonishes, "And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye.. Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye?" (Matthew 7:3-4)

It's sad to see Malaysians driven apart by our own design. We are our own worst enemies because we forget we are fighting for the same things really at the end of the day. It's a pity if we choose to poison this land with hate instead of perfuming it with love, if instead of being peace-makers, we stir up violence, whether by word or deed,  - against each other. We can get so hung up on politics and politicians, we miss the heart of it all - we - the ordinary rakyat - fail to be the Malaysian we are supposed to be to all other Malaysians.

I wonder, is it just now only  'suddenly' we have become less than humane humans to one another, or  horror of horrors, deep inside, we have all along been like that - espousing equality with our mouths but actually our hearts are still secretly harboring resentment, pride and bitterness against those 'not like' us. (I think the term is hypocrite). Are we content to just get by holding 'muhibbah' open houses every festival and call that unity?  I hope not, because that's not the Malaysia I dream of, and want to be part of. Why are we surprised and oh-so-pleased when a Chinese boy helps a Malay pak-cik or an Indian "Ama" across a busy road?  Shouldn't that be the expected norm in a multi-racial (supposedly) harmonious nation?

 I can never be a bumiputra in this land, I am not an Indian, I can only be a Chinese, but my heart's prayer is that I will be the most Malaysian Chinese I can be to the orang asli/anak negeri whom I meet in  church, to my Melayu mak-cik neighbor, to my Indian newspaper-vendor, to the Indonesian maids who come by to clean the house, to the Nepali guard who waves at me every morning, as I drive past.

I don't need politicians who promise heaven and earth once every 5 years , but I do need God to remind me, how easily I can turn into a monster who spews poison that stinks up everything around me, instead of being one of the many different flowers He has planted in this field called Malaysia, exuding a perfume that beautifies and makes fragrant my little corner of this land. I don't need an election to teach me about human decency, mutual respect and just plain manners  - Shouldn't that be the norm for everyday living?

Published MMO 7/5/18