Selamat pagi Malaysia.
When you live, as I do, 6000km away from Tanah Air ku...you see things differently.
I see things not as a Malay (of which I am rightly proud to be), not as a member of UMNO (of which, as a Malay I was expected to be), nor of any other political affiliations (of which I am not), not as someone from the East Coast, West Coast, Semenanjung or from Sabah or Sarawak and not even, at times, as a Malaysian who is staying abroad as I have been, for the past three decades.
I watch from afar, the goings-on in Kuala Lumpur and in other parts of the nation, with a detached eye, not in any way sullied by political affiliations, race, or any of the different nuances that Malaysians are wont to see through because they live in Malaysia. That does not mean that what I see and how I see things back in Malaysia 6000km away, is kosher, but at the very least, what I see is untainted by the need to play to any gallery, or advance some nefarious political, racial or religious agenda, except mine. And my agenda is to write of things as I see it.
Living abroad is no hardship. Thinking of what is happening in Kuala Lumpur is.
I was back in KL recently for three months, and I came away from that trip with a deeper understanding of politics and how it was perceived and practiced by those in politics and by those out of politics....and the overwhelming emotion that I sensed from that people that I met and talked with can be put into one word INDIFFERENCE.
In late 2022 they had voted for change and their King, had also wanted change...and together, a King and his Rakyat, brought into government, DSAI as prime minister and a Unity government to Putrajaya. And that was that. There was nothing more we could do...it was now up to DSAI and the Unity Government to make change happen.
From the very beginning, there have been questions asked if DSAI was doing the right thing when putting together his Cabinet, in the appointment of the people that were to be his "team", and later, his priorities and manner of doing government. Back then in early 2023, the government was still a work in progress and despite our misgivings, we were prepared to give DSAI the benefit of the doubt. Today, October 2023, almost a year into government ...that benefit of the doubt has turned into INDIFFERENCE.
There is INDIFFERENCE because the democracy that we have is very undemocratic. What we want this Unity government to do, they are not doing....and I am not even going to start listing down what this Unity government has not done - but suffice to say, that Malaysians know that there is nothing much they can do to make DSAI understand their misgivings, their frustrations, their disappoint and even their anger of how things have turned up to be after almost a year in government.
They cannot tell DSAI to stop making too many trips abroad and start focusing on issues at home...the high cost of living, education, corruption, good governance...and they want him to focus on making life better for all Malaysians. They cannot understand why there have been so many issues of Malaysians being hauled up as being a threat to national security. People are detained and arrested for writing and doing things that are deemed seditious. Books are banned and bookshops are raided. Race and religion are still troubling issues that affect all Malaysians. Justice is not seen to be done....and the list goes on and on....and while we are aware of these issues and problems, this Unity government and DSAI cannot see the trees for the forests.
And so the people are INDIFFERENT. Let these politicians and let this Madani government do all it wants...we can wait until the next general elections...and then we will know what to do.
I hope DSAI understands this. I hope his minister in this Unity or Madani government understands this, and I hope they do not take advantage of this INDIFFERENCE of the rakyat to go do whatever politicians want to do...because in the end, there is the general election. Enough said.
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