COMMENT As the world turns and brings in the New Year of 2013, I have a special wish to make. I wish the Ketuanan Melayu polity Happy New Year, may you grow up, get really one year older, and begin leading the people more wisely and maturely like you should.  

As this polity comprises of different individuals with equally different personalities, views and tastes it would help to identify who they are in real life. What do they look like, what do they think, and what do they do in reality?

To me the best ways of identifying them is to refer back to some of the actions and utterances of some of them, based on two principles of psychology. First, that thinking influences behaviour; and two, that people think of themselves according to what they think they can do, but others think of them according to what they have actually and already done.

azlan For this I take firstly Harussani Zakaria, the mufti of Perak, who banned the poco-poco dance on the argument that its steps resemble the (Christian) cross. Harussani is also accredited with the idea that AIDS sufferers should be banished to some remote islands. Surely these are wishful decrees made by him as an overzealous ulama, but otherwise non-substantiated by his colleagues and peers.      

Then there is Reezal Merican Naina Merican, the Umno Youth bigwig, who claimed something like that the Malays are God’s chosen people. It’s the first time I’ve heard this, and am doubtful whether any well-meaning ulama or learned Islamic clergy would or could support him.   

People like Ahmad Ismail and Ibrahim Ali meantime have the penchant to ask people who do not like government policies to ‘go back’ to their country of origin, like India or China.  

Ibrahim Ali is also accredited with the claim that the ‘privileges’ accorded to the Malays in the constitution really mean ‘rights’. So to him, these Malay rights must be protected from the marauding and greedy non-Malays.

And very recently we have the incredible Zainuddin Maidin (or Zam) the former information minister, who took it upon himself to state that former Indonesian president BJ Habibie and Anwar Ibrahim are stooges of western imperialism.

Not amused

Current incumbent President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was not amused with this truly stupid remark and wanted Zainuddin to apologise. Zainuddin said he would do so only if the president could repeat this request in this country! Ketuanan Melayu’s deft skill in international relations and diplomacy has scaled new heights.  

That’s not all, either. When Susilo told Prime Minister Najib Razak about this, all Najib said has been that it’s the silly election season gripping this country (and perhaps ending it with “so, do excuse Zainuddin please”).

Talking about Najib, he has very thoughtfully wished all Malaysian Christians with the profound statement that “since becoming prime minister I have placed a lot of emphasis on the unifying concepts of 1Malaysia and the Global Movement of the Moderates. These concepts are partly about establishing a dialogue, which is important, but I am also determined that they lead to real action, too.” (Ref: Najib’s Christmas blog).

These are brave words. But Najib also declared that 1Malaysia has been designed to be strategically ambiguous or vague. “I didn’t define the concept very clearly, but that was by design,” he told The Malay Mail in an interview dated Dec 7. Here is our prime minister stating he has consciously and deliberately been implementing a strategically ambiguous public policy! Whoa!

As for the global movement of the moderates his government is still sitting pretty on the court appeal to the use of ‘Allah’ by non-Muslims.

Najib, too, is calling for all BN candidates to be vetted by the MACC before they could become candidates in the nest general elections.

Only that the Election Commission (EC) deputy chairperson Wan Ahmad Wan Omar reportedly told Sinar Harian Online (Dec 24) that legislation be put in place before election candidates could be vetted effectively and comprehensively to make sure that they are clean and free from corruption. In lieu of this, it is enough for each political party to vet their own candidates internally, he reportedly said.  

Back to square one

So Wan Ahmad charged on with protecting the status quo: “It is the responsibility of each party to choose and make sure that their candidates are free from any graft elements... The matter is up to the parties since it is their right to screen their own candidates.” It’s back to square one, folks.

And here is the clincher: Wan Ahmad warned that the vetting process can be seen as a hindrance to the democratic freedom that has always been practised in Malaysia. And all this comes from the number two EC official the body overseeing the election process ‘in the world’s best democracy’ (Najib’s words).

So these are some of the faces of the Ketuanan Melayu polity - those in the likes of Harussani Zakaria, Ibrahim Ali, Reezal Merican Naina Merican, Zaunuddin Maidin, Najib Abdul Razak, Wan Ahmad Wan Omar.

From these anecdotes they think and behave along the axioms ‘might is right’; ‘I am right you are wrong’; ‘if you are not with me then you are against me.’  They show no tact, skill, diplomacy, professionalism, dedication, love and loyalty for the country. They show no sense of responsibility and accountability to the people. About the only constancy is that they all champion the interest of the Malays, Islam - and themselves.

I am dedicating my New Year wish to them along with the message to please grow up and be accountable and responsible to the interests of the people who have given them their trust in the first place.   

I make this wish after noting all this while this body has been running the country with ineptness, clumsiness, and even childishness. They mocked democracy with ours being the ‘best democracy in the whole world’, although about the only thing democratic here is the general elections that takes place once every five years anyway.

They mocked the rule of law by practising rule by law and by private individuals. They tamper with universal human rights by claiming that this is superseded by religious rights.

They broke the check and balance of governance, gagged the judiciary, robbed the Treasury dry, and eroded the progress and development of the people’s intellectual growth.  

Positive factors squandered

So much so that this blessed country of ours, yes, blessed with so much wealth both above and below ground, with sound administrative, educational and economic infrastructure, and with very industrious human capital, could run aground. Today all of the positive factors above have been squandered, with many saying we are at the brink of a failed state.  

The reality today is that we have been left far behind by countries like Singapore and South Korea (countries with similar standing to us about a generation ago) in economic indices like per capita income, foreign exchange reserves, and in direct investment (FDI). In addition, too many of our own people, those gifted with talent, knowledge and skill, are running away to foreign lands.

Worse are yet to come, for our education system has gone down to below average levels. Our judiciary too is becoming the talk of the world legal fraternity - for the wrong reasons. Our debt ceiling, meanwhile, has been busted!

And it is corrupt to the core. The Global Financial Integrity (GFI) has indicated that illicit capital outflow from Malaysia 2001-2010 stood at US$285 billion, with US$64.38 billion for 2010 alone. These figures have put puny size Malaysia as well within the world top-five league.      

How could this across-the-board decay come about? A bit of reflection into recent communication history won’t hurt. At about thirty or forty years ago when the Ketuanan Melayu label was first coined, truth has been what the government wanted it to be. Information was controlled and the press gagged.

The people were suppressed where they were told what they could or could not do, write, read, or think. All sorts of laws (like the ISA and OSA) were around, and religious fatwas or edicts spelt, to make sure the people toe the line.

And people forget easily anyway. So whatever the people found out about Ketuanan Melayu abusing its power they noted it with alarm, especially being aware that ‘power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely’.

Yes, the people noticed the many unsavoury things the leadership did (like high level corruption) but were unable to put them to a stop. Such news or information were quickly filtered away anyway. They dissipate into thin air in good time.  

But that has been the ‘pre-net’ and ‘info-have not’ era.  

Today in the world of ‘post-net’ or ‘info-have’ of the Facebook and Twitter computer age we have and do enjoy the benefits of instant communication and easy retrieval of knowledge and information.

People are more aware

Top that with wider travel, wider experience, and higher education we have the people who have more individual spirit and orientation. People’s memory also span far longer, with closer social interaction with one another. People are more aware, knowledgeable, literate and connected.

So today’s people are still not amused with the shenanigans. But they are more knowledgeable and daring. They are hitting back, not in direct physical terms, but by openly expressing their anger and disgust. (The national mass media like The Star and national television channels are compliant and would not entertain such views).  

I quote two cases to illustrate. In the case of Zainuddin’s self-appointed foray into international diplomacy the following individuals albeit in pseudonym have expressed their disgust in the comments section of Malaysiakini articles:       

Tholu: "In the kingdom of the blind, the one-eyed man is king." In BN, there are no two-eyed men, and it is therefore assumed that morons like former information minister Zainuddin Maidin are great intellectuals.”

Ferdtan: “Do our ministers, or former ones, have some grey matter between their ears? No wonder, our country is going to the dogs.”

Longjaafar: “Stupidity in its purest form! Zam oh Zam, what have we done to deserve you.....?”

Enough said on this case.

NONE Then Malaysiakini (Dec 24) reported that two activists from Felda settlers pressure group Felda Settlers’ Children’s Association (Anak) suffered injuries after their convoy was attacked by BN supporters in Negri Sembilan.

The incident apparently occurred when Anak’s 30-car convoy, part of the group's Save Felda Orange Convoy road show, was stopped from entering Felda Bukit Rokan Utara, near Tampin. They were barred from entering the Felda settlement by 100 Barisan Nasional (BN) flag-wielding youths, Felda employees and police personnel. The following are some equally angry reader reactions:

Not Confused: “Desperation and yet more desperation. Violence and intimidation like this is about all the Umno-BN members and their equally desperate supporters can produce.

“They have low intelligence, zero tolerance or knowledge of the democratic processes and are seriously destined for a major awakening.”

EugeneT: “Every day, this country is descending towards hooliganism and gangsterism, but the authorities are not doing a single thing to curb this disturbing trend.

“If they are not doing anything, it's effectively sending a message saying they condone such unruly behaviour and violence.”

Sentiments from the people

Now, these sentiments have come from the people and the Ketuanan Melayu should pay heed. This governing polity should open its closed racist and theocratic mental frame and by extension ease off its suppression of the people’s minds. Was it not Najib Abdul Razak after all who coined the phrase “1Malaysia People First Productivity Now”?

Regretfully this doesn’t appear to be in its immediate agenda. It is instead trying to preserve the status quo. To substantiate, it is trying to censor the internet with the establishment of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).

For all these reasons I am making this wish for the Ketuanan Melayu to grow up in the coming year and beyond. Do lead the country less with a narrow, ethnocentric and closed mind. Your leadership features and style has proven disastrous in the past and I do contend won’t be successful in future either. Do begin to lead with a pragmatic, flexible and open mind.

And do educate our future generations to develop this open mind.  

Otherwise the Ketuanan Melayu polity will surely end up not being the one-eyed king in the kingdom of the blind, but the one eyed king in a country of healthy and normal two-eyed citizens.   

So, for whatever it is worth, my New Year wish is my wake-up call to the Ketuanan Melayu polity.

AB SULAIMAN is an observer of human traits and foibles, especially within the context of religion and culture. As a liberal, he marvels at the way orthodoxy fights to maintain its credibility in a devilishly fast-changing world. He hopes to provide some understanding to the issues at hand and wherever possible, suggest some solutions. He holds a Bachelor in Social Sciences (Leicester, UK) and a Diploma in Public Administration, Universiti Malaya.