COMMENT In less than a week, we could have been celebrating a man’s 73rd birthday, but instead, we are in a state of mourning as we honour the memory of this man who may have left this world, but yet did not leave without living imprints in our hearts and minds.

The passing of the late Adenan Satem sent shockwaves throughout the nation. This of course resulted in an outpouring of love and grief to a mild-mannered man, who is held in high regard and commanded the respect of Sarawakians across all political and religious divides. This sort of veneration and reverence towards a political leader, especially here in Sarawak, is somewhat unprecedented.

Rightly so, being a beacon of religious and racial moderation in the region, where in many instances he chose to stand with tolerance although it may have been easier to divide. He set himself apart and chose to speak out for what he strongly holds on to, especially when it came down to our state rights, even though it was easier for him to sit back and enjoy the later part of his years.

In just that short span of barely three years in service, he created an impression among the locals simply by being a breath of fresh air in politics especially after taking the helm over from his predecessor, who may not enjoy the same reputation and adoration the late Adenan may seem to have.The fact is that, in comparison, the glow that Adenan may have enjoyed could also be down to the aversion associated with his predecessor.

Don’t get me wrong, I am in no way trying to dishonour a man’s memory, neither am I or will I never speak ill of the character and intention of the late Adenan. We may have differences in certain approaches and opinions, but that should not be equated with disapproval for his heart, character and intentions.

However in our grief and honour for this man, the narratives and realities that we are facing in the state should not be changed and ignored. An honourable man’s death should not be leveraged as a campaigning tool or a veil to conceal the things that are going wrong in the state.

I had the privilege of paying my last respects and sending my condolences and love to the family on the day of his death. His wife took some time to share with us some of his last words and partings.One particular message stood out and somewhat gripped my heart.

He said “I want people to LOVE Sarawak as much as I do, cause if they do, they will take good care of it...”

I strongly believe, that is the crux of his heart, the core of his being. That the love for our state should be the lens of which we view issues that are going on and affecting our state and country. And that is where we need to be truly honest with ourselves.

‘Can we ignore corruption and wastage?’

If we truly love our state, can we ignore the rampant corruption and wastage that has not only crippled our state, but also our country? Can we still endorse the very government of the day which allegedly steals from their own people to allegedly only enrich themselves and their own? Can we still stand by alleged bad governance and wastage of our money which was meant to be used to elevate our society and state?

Many will try to put the blame on Malaya and how we are not given our fair share of allocations and even oil royalty. As much merit those statement may have, there is even more truth to how our state BN government has badly managed the resources that we already have, including our timber revenue which was harvested by the state. Can we say with a clear conscience, that our wealth is truly responsibly and fairly distributed among our own people?

If we truly love our state, can we just sit by and see our Dayak brothers lose possession and become squatters on their very own land? Can we allow the practices, culture and identity of our fellow brothers be trampled upon and have their rights taken away?

In an effort to divert and distract, there were voices which blamed the judges who are from peninsula of not understanding our Dayak rights. Although there may be merits to the argument, let us not lose sight and forget who sparked the issue and appealed it to the Federal Court. It was the state BN government of Sarawak which appealed the case, and it was that very government which allegedly took our lands and resources in the first place.

If we truly love our state, can we continue to endorse and empower a prime minister who allegedly has no qualms to use religious and racial rhetoric to divide a nation? Say whatever they want here, but it doesn’t change the fact that Sarawak BN support, allows the prime minister who is entrenched in multiple financial scandals, and who continues to spew out divisive sentiments but yet still continue to stay in power.

Their endorsement for his government has allowed him to allegedly further abuse the institutions we have in place to consolidate his power at the expense of the people.

Scandals after scandals, wastage after wastage, discrimination after discrimination, but yet many of us are still tolerant and accepting of such practices. If we truly love our state, can we even allow ourselves to sell our souls just for the sake of petty crumbs and constant empty promises?

For me, Adenan is an example of a man with good intentions, but weighed down and limited by a broken and corrupt system. No matter how good a captain is, a broken ship will still eventually sink and drag down all that is in.

Thus, it is essential that we do not lose sight of what really matters. The legacy of Adenan should not be translated into the support for a certain political party, nor be used as a campaign tool, but rather his legacy is the courage and the audacity to speak up and to uphold what is righteous, just and true.

His lens of love for the state should then be translated into a catalyst for a shift of political culture in our country from self-centred politics to others-centred politics. Politics of elevation rather than control. Politics of good governance rather than of negligence and wastage.

I truly believe that what self-centred men have torn down in the past, others-centred men can build up in the future.

At the end of the day, he just wants people to love Sarawak as much as he loves Sarawak.

So through this sense of love, it is important we do not lose sight of what is true and what is just. This aspiration can be achieved by all of us no matter our backgrounds or creed, through our dedication, care and hard work in what we do on a daily basis for the betterment of the people in our country, Malaysia and our state of Sarawak.

KELVIN YII is a parliamentary assistant to Stampin MP Julian Tan.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.