We welcome the decision of the cabinet to revamp the Biro Tata Negara (BTN) courses to be in line with the ‘1Malaysia’ concept of Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak. The prime minister must be commended for conceding to the wishes of the people in coming to the decision.

However, whether the revamp will really materialise has yet to be seen as from past experiences, we know that most government promises end up as mere rhetoric to gain political mileage.
 
Of late, BTN has come under severe criticism for its civics courses that are compulsory for civil servants and university undergraduates. BTN was established to build the physical and mental resilience of the civil servants to boost their patriotism.

It also aims to promote discipline and form the character of the civil servants to promote good attitude, values and excellent work ethics. These are undeniably noble aims that must be encouraged but the implementation of them leaves much to be desired.

Although the members of the ruling party and some Barisan Nasional (BN) ministers including the deputy rime minister are adamant that the BTN courses are on track and achieving the desired aims of inculcating a sense of patriotism among young Malaysians of all races, the cabinet decision to revamp it is an admission of flaws in its implementation. It is one of the rare occasions when then BN government seems to be admitting its mistake.

On the other hand, the opposition has raised concerns that these courses and closed-door sessions are used by the BN to instil racial and religious ill-feelings among the various races in the country.

Recently, a number of former participants which included Pakatan Rakyat (PR) politicians and journalists have spoken of their shocking experiences at BTN camps. They described these courses as racist brainwashing and political indoctrination programmes to ensure civil servants and students back the BN.

There have been increasing calls by many quarters to shut down these programmes as they are creating more negative than positive effects on racial and religious tolerance and integration in the country. The Pakatan-controlled states have even decided not to send their employees and students to these courses in the future.

These allegations by the opposition are serious and if they are true, then there are very urgent matters to address with regards to inter-ethnic relations. The activities of the BTN go against the basic principle of the ‘1Malaysia’ concept as promoted by the prime minister himself.

The government must continue to act to prove that it is serious about integrating the people through this policy which has yet to gain the people’s trust.

Patriotism is an inherent feeling of love and pride for one’s country. It should be a commodity of all citizens regardless of their race, creed and political ideology. It cannot be instilled in the lecture hall (or camp) alone but by the experiences of day-to-day living in an environment that is gratifying to them.

This favourable environment must be created by the government with policies that are fair to all citizens and not by mere slogans and propaganda.

After 52 years of living together as fellow citizens, it is disturbing that there are still many advocating a divisive ethnic policy for the nation. Such policies are obsolete and are a sure way to failure in today’s highly competitive world.

Furthermore, it is extremely sad that there are still those who look at their fellow citizens of a different race with suspicion and animosity. It is unfortunate that we mistake our own brothers and sisters as enemies when the real enemy is outside waiting to prey on our weaknesses in this global economic war.

If we want to succeed as a nation, there is no option but for all citizens to put aside their ethnic differences and accept one another as Malaysians. This is the mindset that we must adopt and instil in our children.

All activities whether political, social, economic, civics or even religious must be ethnically inclusive and not divisive as they are now. It may not be easy now but if we do not start now we will never realise our dreams of a united, prosperous and progressive nation as envisaged by our founding forefathers.