Parkaran Kutty
I am not going to sugar-coat the fear I have for my motherland Malaysia. Let’s call a spade a spade.
We are witnessing the slow, agonising death of all the pledges that we have been making since our school days. The unspoken agreement that we would be a nation of budi bahasa, of patience, of quiet dignity is being shredded in public, and the sad part is that we are not even blinking.
We have become a nation of moral accountants, tallying up who owes what based on race, religion, and political allegiance, rather than who is right or who is just. The evidence is not just in the courts; it is in our social media feeds, and in the behaviour of many citizens who have learned to cheer for the convicted.
Let’s look at the Malaysian spectacle. We have high-profile politicians, charged with corruption that would make a pirate blush, walking into courtrooms like they are attending a wedding.
They are greeted with garlands and cheering followers. They are feted, funded, and in some cases, literally bankrolled by the very public that claims to despise them.
When a convicted leader’s fine is paid by donations, while a child with leukemia begs for RM50,000 on a crowdfunding page, we have lost our moral compass. We have decided that the crime is not the corruption but the crime is being poor, being sick, or being powerless enough to need help.
Choosing to be blind
The ignorance of the masses is not the most chilling part in our country. It is the intelligence of the enablers. We see lawyers, academics, and professionals, people whom we turn to when in trouble, defending the indefensible with straight faces.
They will tell you that "everyone does it," or that "at least he delivers," or worse, that "the other side is worse."
This does not reflect on the intelligence of these people. I would say this is a chosen blindness. It is tantamount to putting your hands over your ears so you don’t have to hear the screams of the dying hospitals, the underfunded schools, or the crumbling infrastructure.
We have become a nation of people who cannot see the trees for the wood—we are so obsessed with the "big picture" of racial supremacy or political survival that we have lost the ability to see the individual acts of rot that are eating away at the foundation.
Rule of law seriously challenged
We hear the phrase rule of law thrown around like confetti, but the reality is that it is no longer about justice, it is about whether you have the right connections or your case is politically convenient to pursue.
Many in the circle of my family and friends shockingly admit that they would rather be led by a convicted corrupt politician who has helped the community than one whose reform promises are yet to be seen. This shocking stand is the final nail in the coffin.
This is not pragmatism but a sign of despair. As someone once said - it is the desperate logic of a drowning man who would rather grab onto a shark than sink alone. We have become so cynical that we prefer the devil we know—even if that devil is draining the country’s coffers—over the angel we haven't verified yet.
Toxic undercurrent
Underneath all of this lies a toxic undercurrent - the belief that corruption, extremism, and ingratitude are acceptable as long as they serve the narrative of racial or religious supremacy or political ambitions.
This is heading towards tribalism with morality, honour and dignity thrown out of the window.
The problem with our country is that generally, smart ones are not running the government. They are not running the agencies. Instead, we see the placement of loyalists, of sycophants, of those who will not rock the boat, into key positions.
We have rewarded mediocrity and punished meritocracy. We have chosen obedience over competence, and we are paying the price in lost opportunities.
Malaysia may not be falling but I would say it is sinking quietly with politicians spending more time fighting for power and positions. The good and honest ones meanwhile are told to be patient and wait for the next election as they claim things will get better.
But they obviously won't as we have seen time and again, not unless we have a collective awakening, irrespective of our religious or racial background.
We need to stop being nice and gentle. We need to start being furious and register our outrage. We need to demand that competence replaces cronyism, that integrity replaces identity, that the rule of law applies equally to the powerful and the powerless.
The question is not whether Malaysia can be saved. The question is whether we have the courage to save it—or whether we will continue to be nonchalant and donate to the fines of the very people who are robbing us blind, while our children beg for medicine in the streets.
The choice is ours. And we are running out of time.
Parkaran Kutty (parkarank@gmail.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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