Malaysia 64 YEARS - WHAT WENT WRONG?

 AN ARTICLE WRITTEN IN UTMOST SINCERITY BY ONG HOCK SIEW. It is not meant to criticise or look for scape-goats and excuses. It is an attempt to look at the truth and after 6 years as Malaya and 58 years as Malaysia, Malaysians should be able to face up to the painful truth. Then and only then can there be the beginnings of a real solution to its in-depth woes and problems. 

Our call is to love and support our fellow Malaysians and in the words of our fantastic founding father Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj, written 64 years ago, the rich should help the poor and those who are blessed to  help raise up those who have less . His wonderful call was for Malaysians to live as one  happy family (paraphrased)

Malaysia is 64 years old and after 64 years of co-existence, we are more divided as ever. What went wrong?

THE TRUTH IS WHAT MATTERS!

One thing is clear as we review the situation in our beloved Malaysia after 64 years. So long as the Leaders and the people refuse to face up to the truth, there will never be a resolution of the situation. 

OF COURAGE & HONESTY

For our political leaders to face up to the truth will take an immense amount of courage and an equally large measure of honesty. Will any leader wanting to play to the gallery ever embrace such honesty. 

WE ARE ALL IN IT TOGETHER

The ordinary man in the street in his simplicity should also embrace this honest truth before Malaysia can come right in its ‘true Nationalistic north’. The undeniable truth is outlined below but can the various segments of Malaysian society accept this truth?

1… ‘DIVIDE-AND-RULE’ APPROACH

The “divide-and-rule” approach was largely initiated during the years of the tenure of Malaysia’s longest serving  leader. Instead of unifying the country and extending the “part of one family” ideology of the great first Prime Minister of Malaysia, he decided that playing off one race against the other and one category against another would give him the long-term enhanced security he desired. 

This has left Malaysia divided from “head to toe” and the damage may be almost irreparable. 

2… OF CRONYISM & NEPOTISM

The practice of cronyism and nepotism has also became a virtual practice during this longest serving Prime Minister’s rule. It created a class of extremely privileged multi-millionaires designed to throw their loyalty and support behind him

3… PRECURSOR TO CORRUPTION

Cronyism and nepotism are always precursors for corruption to proliferate and unchecked it slowly becomes a way of life. The foundations of Kleptocracy is always based on such a scenario playing out. This is how it allowed someone who did not think he could be deposed like the son of the second Prime Minister of Malaysia to shamelessly go on to be the top Kleptocratic leader in the world. 

4… PLAY OF SENTIMENTS

While all these manipulated scenes were playing out, the religious card was also scripted out. It was always a case rightly or wrongly that the Christians were a big threat to the Muslims. The play-up of such sentiments was exactly what the Leaders needed to do to strike fear in the hearts of the ordinary Malays so as to hold on to power. 

5… CREATION OF A COMMON ENEMY

Interestingly it all came down to “How can I hold on to power for the long term without worrying about consequences?” That is how the need to create a ‘common enemy’ became a necessity and what better group to bear the brunt than the Non-bumiputras (which included the natives of Sabah and Sarawak). 

6… FLAWED EDUCATION SYSTEM

Unfortunately the National Educational policies and systems followed the same pathway of playing to the racial card. It was always “the Chinese and the non-Malays are taking over the wealth of the country.”. So measures were taken to give the huge majority of scholarships and places in Universities and colleges to one group. 

To do this, the Educational authorities quickly lowered marking standards and the mass entry of students who were ushered on also led to lowered teaching standards. This resulted in graduates who could not speak properly and the mass production of inferior graduates resulted in a failure of the entire education framework. This has led to many graduates ending up as Grab-food delivery guys and small traders.

Meanwhile the Non-Bumiputra students had to fight to overcome the system shortcomings and worked much harder to survive in a lop-sided system. They simply studied harder, worked harder, endured better and adapted and conditioned themselves better to succeed.

As a result, many of them who were prepared in this cauldron of hardship and unfairness went on to the international platform and excelled against the competition. At home, employers always chose graduates who are qualitatively superior without regard for creed or colour. So the poor quality and incapable graduates suffered. They were not wanted. 

 What was left went for the Civil service and many of the ‘left-overs’ ended up here. The Government then had to also expand its capacity to absorb the many unemployed graduates to avoid the dissatisfaction of bumiputra graduates not being able to get employment simmering over. As a result, Malaysia today has one of the biggest civil servants per capita of population in the world. 

7… OF INEFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP 

Unwarranted Compromise always brings with it unwanted practices. It is the same with the Cabinet of Malaysia. Because of the ‘hung’ condition in the current political balance, any new PM has to accommodate the many demands made on him, hence the unnecessary creation of positions to meet the compromise. 

As a result, Malaysia now has a cabinet of Ministers larger than that of China’s. 

8… WHAT MERITOCRACY?

Along the same lines of unwarranted measures, ‘Bumiputra promotion’ brought about a wanton disregard for meritocracy. The best people were often left floundering in their own space and the best talents were not used. Compare this with Singapore and you will understand why Singapore with no natural resources and no natural wealth has done so much better than Malaysia. Try and listen on YouTube to PM Lee Hsien Loong outlining their plans for Singapore in the coming year under ‘NATIONAL DAY RALLY 2021’ (56 years) and see the difference.

What came out distinctly essential in his message was that Malays, Indians and Chinese no longer regard themselves along their racial identities but they all blur such racial lines and proudly declare that they are Singaporeans first and last!

9… The Pandemic has made all of Malaysia’s weaknesses more glaring. The dichotomy of merit and favouritism has made Malaysia an almost ‘failed’ state. The number of its populace mired in poverty has increased substantially and there is no Leadership blueprint for a real plan for the years ahead. 

10… Interestingly, the use of the “Chinese and Non-Bumis” as the excuse and scapegoat tor Bumiputra woes has lost its validity and credibility going forward. The educated and even the smarter rural Malays now know that the real reason for the failure of Government to help them has been due to the failure of Malay leadership and more painfully, the greed and wilful disregard of its Malay leaders for the people that has led to the present dilemma.

11… Dr Mahathir authored the “Malay Dilemma” where he used physiological, natural and background factors to explain how the Malays were disadvantaged as a race. Many of these assertions are now recognised as whimsical distortions of the pen and his mind. If it is to be read in context, he should pen another chapter on the devious and malignant nature of some of its leaders and how their greed, prejudices and devious self-aggrandising intentions has brought Malaysia to its knees.  . 

Another chapter should appropriately be dedicated to writing out his confessions of all the repugnant mistakes and policies he had crafted. He was the real Architect of much that is not right in Malaysia. 

12… One example of how the ideals of our nationhood were betrayed took place in the eighties in Sabah. That was the orchestration of blatantly giving ICs to the illegal Filipino refugees in Sabah to offset the voting advantage of the Dusun-Kadazans and the Chinese. The result of this betrayal - tens of thousands (if not more) of illegal Filipino and Indonesian refugees becoming citizens of Malaysia and not only citizens; they also became Bumiputras. This is a real betrayal of the very principles of nationhood which in the proper context  would be tantamount to treason.

13… By way of comment, my own family has been in a Malaysia seven generations and yet we are sometimes called “Pendatangs”. To add insult to injury, such moronic leaders who say such stupid things are sometimes only first-generation Malaysians from Indonesia. 

14… The contents here are the honest truth seen from the eyes of one who loves and adores this “Tabah-Ku Malaysia” and I believe most right-thinking Malaysians will not disagree with this view. 

15… Mahathir’s vision of an ‘advanced country’ status country for Malaysia in 2020 now lies in tatters.  He carried the mantle of leading the country for the majority of the years in question and he has put in place a system that was and is primed for failure. Still until today, not a word of remorse or regret has come out from him for the harm and damage he has done to our National psyche.

16… Sadly the task of correction and realignment of the present system may be too big a task for any future leader. For a leader to change Malaysia and place it back on tract for economic and socio-economic affluence would require a young, brave, honest, untarnished and purely nationalistic leader without regard for colour, creed or beliefs. 

Any alluding to religious, racial, background, communal or parochial leanings would probably cause even the best of Leaders to fail despite having the best of intentions.. 

17… Can such a vibrant dynamic young leader be possible? After 64 years of an often tumultuous and perilous journey, I fear that this is really an improbable dream. If I am allowed to be frank, I fear for the future of my children and the generation of my children’s children.

As I look for answers on this 64th Merdeka anniversary, I can only see Embers in the wind….. 

18… 64 years on….. What then can we as loyal, committed and passionate Malaysians do? The best answer to this is the ballot box in the coming 15th General Election.

Let us first vote out all these old, disloyal and Kleptocratic leaders. Then, let us encourage a new breed of young, untarnished, smart, internet-savvy and committed leaders and vote them in. We can start a movement for such young talented honest leaders and vote them in. Then and only then will we be able to see real racial, religious, communal and societal oneness. 

19… Let me end with the words of a ‘Sing-out’ protest song that I used to sing in the sixties. 

“Which way Malaysia?

Which way Malaysia?

Which way Malaysia?

Which way to go?

This is is my country and

I want to know

Which way Malaysia is going to go?

There is many a road to travel 

Many a hill to climb

I’m gonna find the straightest road

And walk it till the end of time”

MAY THE NEXT 10 YEARS BE A TIME OF RECONCILIATION, RAPPROCHEMENT, RESTORATION AND RESPECT FOR EACH OTHER. GOD BLESS MALAYSIA.

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