Khairy Jamaluddin recently argued that the growing cooperation between PN and BN in the Negeri Sembilan election is the result of the Madani government neglecting the Malays.
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Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil quickly jumped in to defend the government.
How did Fahmi defend it?
To put it simply, he made it personal.
He argued that the government could not possibly be neglecting Malays because he himself is Malay. His father is Malay, his mother is Malay, his grandparents are Malays. Therefore, as a Malay serving in the government,how could he neglect the Malays..
Apart from that, Fahmi also launched a personal attack on Khairy, claiming that Khairy was merely making such statements to attract attention.
Now, I don't know about you, but it increasingly appears that Fahmi has become the Madani government's designated person who is charge of to taking on the Young Turks in the opposition.
Previously, when Rafizi was flying high politically, Fahmi tried to bring him down by spreading lies about him. It was a spectacularly bad attempt. Not only did it fail, it backfired. And when it backfired, Fahmi did not even try to defend himself. He simply deleted the offending social media post and pretended that nothing had happened.
Now Fahmi is once again defending the Madani government against another younger opposition figure.
The only positive thing I can say is that, at least this time, Fahmi is not resorting to spreading lies as he did with Rafizi.
Personally, I do not think the conflict between Malays and non-Malays in Malaysia has much to do with one side infringing upon the rights, interests or sensitivities of the other, as Khairy is claiming or Fahmi is denying.
As we all subconsciously understand, the issue between Malays and non-Malays has more to do with "control " than with "rights".
Malays and non-Malays are not primarily competing because they wish to trample each other's rights or offend each other's sensitivities.
They are competing mostly because each side wants to control the other.
The relationship between Malays and non-Malays in Malaysia can best be described as that of a traditional employer and employee.
Both sides, consciously or otherwise, are struggling to become the employer while preventing the other from becoming anything more than a permanent employee.
A traditional employer does not necessarily wish harm upon an employee. As a matter of fact, the employer likely wants to "take care" of their employee.
Whether the Malays become the "employer" and the non-Malays the "employee," or vice versa, the employer will generally ensure that the employee has enough to eat, a roof over their head, schools for their children, and money in their pockets.
But there is one thing the employee will never be allowed to become.
The employer.
As long as you are content to remain a good employee, grateful for whatever the employer provides, life can be comfortable.
But the moment you try to become the employer yourself—to become equal to the other side or treat the other side as they have treated you—all hell breaks loose.
Suddenly pig farms become a national issue.
The existence of temples is questioned.
A sandwich becomes controversial.
A pair of socks becomes front-page news.
Everything becomes a political flashpoint.
Even if you say, hey, you will have better schools, better pay, better houses, as my employee than you ever will being an employer, no one will take up your offer, because all of us " will rather rule in hell than serve in heaven."
Ironically, if PH were to lose power and Malays once again felt that they had firmly regained the position of "employer," many of today's disputes would probably disappear.
The controversies over pig farms, temples, socks and sandwiches would likely fade away.
But that would not mean harmony had been achieved.
It would simply mean the conflict had changed form.
If non-Malays once again felt like the permanent employees, they too would look for narratives that allow them to reject that status.
Instead of arguing about pig farms or temples, they would emphasise how Singapore is better managed, how Malaysia is corrupt, how talented Malaysians are leaving the country, and how the system is holding them back.
These narratives would serve the same purpose: to avoid accepting permanent employee status while preserving the hope that one day they might become the employer instead.
That, in my view, is the real struggle.
The problem with Malaysians is that we rarely know how to work WITH one another.
We know how to work FOR another Malaysian.
We know how to have another Malaysian work FOR us.
But working WITH another Malaysian—as equals—is something we struggle with.
Equality has never been a particularly strong feature of Malaysian culture.
You know this rings true because it is not confined to politics.
You see it in families.
You see it in workplaces.
You see it in schools.
And you see it in almost every part of Malaysian society.
The question is not whether we can live together.
The question is that by the rule of our culture, one race has to be the boss, and the other races have to be the employees, and none of us will likely agree as to who is to be who until the end of times.
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