A national anthem is supposed to ignite one's love and passion for the country. But this does not seem to be happening in Malaysia.

And it is painfully apparent in the inability of many Malaysians to sing more than two lines, stated a special report by Bernama today.

The report quoted Information Ministry secretary-general Dr Arshad Hashim as saying there were school students who were also unable to memorize the lyrics despite the song being rendered at their weekly assemblies.

In the sporting arena, he complained that there were some Malaysian sportsmen and sportswomen who did not sing the national anthem when played.

"The respect and appreciation for the national anthem is declining and we have to be blamed if future generations can't sing it," he lamented.

"If love and patriotism can be gauged, then the yardstick is the ability of the people to sing the national anthem," added the report.

Lack of respect

What is disturbing, it said, was the lack of respect shown by the public in not standing and singing along when the national anthem was played at functions.

The lack of patriotism has stoked concern in the cabinet, which in turn ordered the Information Ministry to reignite the dying fire.

Its minister Kadir Sheikh Fadzir had since instructed his officers to double their efforts in this direction.

This included making Negaraku compulsory at all government functions.

At one point of time, Arshad had suggested that the national anthem be played in cinemas before the screening of a movie.

He wanted the audience to stand and sing along as a mark of respect.

"This is not new, in the past, cinemas were doing this and we want to revive this culture," he said.

However, the proposal did not go down well with the public who felt that it bordered on excessiveness.

According to the report, Deputy Information Minister Donald Lim met with the private sector such as the Malaysian Film Exhibitors Association (Mafe) to gather their feedback on this matter.

He later said Mafe agreed with the suggestion but will only play the national anthem on special occasions, such as the opening of a new cineplex, independence day and the King's birthday.

The Malaysian Retailers Association, the Malaysian Chinese Trade and Industry Hall as well as Genting Resort World also agreed to play the national anthem on certain occasions.

The history

The report also recalled how the national anthem was selected by a committee headed by the late Tunku Abdul Rahman, who later became the country's first prime minister.

Before the selection was made, a open contest was held for composers around the world to come up with a song that will be the anthem of a nation soon to be born.

It attracted an overwhelming response but none of the entries from international composers were deemed suitable.

Then in Aug 5, 1957, a function was held at the Kuala Lumpur Police Depot to pick the best song.

It was here that Negaraku, the Perak state anthem, which was altered to have a more traditional feel and melody, was selected.

Then a controversy erupted over its original melody but the song was chosen because of its historical significance.

The anthem was closely linked to a Perak Sultan expelled to Seychelles by the British after the killing or its first Resident in the state, JWW Birch.

In 1992, Negaraku was given a more upbeat tempo to reflect the nation's rapid development and progress.

However, it was later deemed too 'fast' for a patriotic song and a new tempo was given in 2003.