My hopes in the dawn of a new Malaysia

It has been a few days since the Malaysian 14th General Elections. What an exciting election outcome it was too. No one predicted the winners – even if they had been hopeful for change. This was history in the making and it was a long drawn out affair. That counting votes took as long as it did was somewhat incredible. It was a snafu that the Rakyat saw through quite easily and the longer the delay in announcing the results, the higher the hopes for change were- soaring almost like a scorching inferno that was trying to reach a peak but wasn’t sure if it ought to. 

The damage of our totalitarian governments in the past showed clearly. The media once again did not know how to respond to the sweeping news of change. They stuttered, talked rot and focused on issues that would probably have not interested an ant, let alone a Rakyat starved for change. The insipidity of the media was probably matched by the Election Commission Chief whose lack of integrity and courage for the office he held was on perfect display. These clearly were the results of corrupt politics, where fear waged over courage and where honour was dishonourable and where lack of integrity meant success. We lack individuals in some of these scenes to stand up to the call from the drums of change. What a far cry these lot were to individuals like the late Karpal Singh, Lim Kit Siang, Anwar Ibrahim, Lim Guan Eng, Ambiga Sreenivasan and Maria Chin- who among others, sounded the battle cry of the Rakyat over and over again at various stages. How embarrassing it must be to be on the less favourable side of such comparison for an entire nation to see. Yet – this is where we see how significant the damage has been.  

For truly, it is damage. Damage done to a nation can be seen in the citizens it produces. How many lack confidence, are subconsciously racist and have a healthy disregard for the rule of law? A simple example is the number of people who would rather pay a policeman a small bribe for a traffic offence just to get off the hook. Another one is the number of people who would buy pirated DVDs or record films in the cinema. The number of shortcuts and other “creative” solutions are many! People have not just been suppressed, they have been groomed in ways that may be visible to those with discretion and who have held on to proper codes of conduct and honour. The damage done to the nation is also seen in the lack of critical thinking we have and the lack of able leaders we could turn to. Right now, we are lauding the man who probably weakened the bastions of this nation to an extent that enabled such destruction to take place. 

The weakening of these bastions occurred through the destruction of the age old principle of separation of powers where the executive took control of the legislature and judiciary to a point where we witnessed absurdity in decisions made by both the legislature and judicial powers. The removal of a chief judge and other judges, bizarre court decisions, frightening legislation that served to give more power to the executive, curb dissent or even the right to free speech, et. el. – are startling examples of how much damage has taken place. 

There is much work to be done. 

The good thing is, that at least it seems to have started. The kind of coverage we seek from the media may take more time to come about because it is about getting the right people into media roles. It is of course, not just the media that is affected. All industries across the board need to step up now. No more playing around with statistics, evidence, etc. Change must happen but sustainable change is slow. 

Hopefully there will be more critical opinion pieces that are produced that will challenge mindsets and keep us on our toes. Hopefully too, the hunt for individuals to take over the rather big jobs of running a nation will not prove too terrible. There are many able Malaysians out there who I hope will be selected to take on the right jobs and who will help to bring about the kind of healing that this nation needs. 

I am hopeful that the step away from race based politics and from corrupt practices will yield good fruit. I am hopeful that people will genuinely see each other as people and not within ethnic groups that they have long been placed under. I am hopeful that the wiping out of corrupt practices mean competitive business practices and genuine opportunity. I am hopeful that our courts will no longer produce bizarre decisions because of pressures unseen. I am hopeful that people will be free to practice the faith of their choosing and I include atheism as a faith where you believe there is no god. I am hopeful that people of different sexual orientations meet with kindness and aren’t discriminated against. I am hopeful for leaders who will be accountable and who won’t dismiss questions with superficial sarcasm but who will demonstrate the ability to provide meaningful answers even under fire. I am hopeful for a great many things. I am hopeful indeed.