By Kemai:
I (and probably most of you readers) live in a harmonious country called Malaysia which is situated in the heart of South-East Asia. Believe it or not, I love my country for the diverse culture, the food and, not to mention, the array of historic sites I can visit here. This country never fails to surprise me with the wonders contained inside it. Despite all the good traits I can come up with, there are many bad ones that I, too, can come up with. However, as this country holds a special spot in my heart, I do believe that there is much room for improvement for Malaysia. Hence, the question I would like to pose to you is this: To go forward or not to go forward?
Rome was not built in a day. Neither was Malaysia. Building a nation requires cooperation not just from a few select groups but also from every single person in our nation. As such, we should ask ourselves: “Do I want to go forward?” Forward here refers to looking ahead in attempt to envision a common goal, an important characteristic in becoming a more developed country. I do think we need to push out current boundaries and look further ahead. Times are not as simple anymore. Life gets more and more challenging each day. With only 9 years to go in meeting Wawasan 2020 (Vision 2020), we ought to ask the following: Have we achieved the things we wanted to achieve? Are we even close to achieving our stated goals?
Having wonderful visions without any concrete planning is as good as not having one in the first place. All talk and no action equals to zero, in the sense that we are inhibited from moving forward. I believe that the government has made many plans for us that are beneficial – ones that hope to bring about change and progress for our country. However, much of what has been planned for us has been blocked by an opaque glass, making pertinent information inaccessible to the general public. With a growing political awareness among our citizens, withholding information could easily cause a stir among the general public. For instance, the recently announced Warisan Merdeka Tower raged thousands of citizens. If only the government had given solid plans and outlines for the project, it would have been less disconcerting to the general ear. Perhaps, even I would be fine with the project. Having said that, I and perhaps many other citizens of Malaysia would like more transparency in the policies implemented.
In light of the numerous criticisms have been raised about our government, I feel that one should not put the blame purely on others. Reflecting on a book I recently read called The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch, I have learned that blaming others will reduce productivity by 30%. Imagine how unproductive we are when we keep blaming others! Instead of blaming others, and I quote Catherine Pulsifer, ‘Fix the problem, not the blame’. This is a dilemma that we all face – adults, teenagers, small kids alike. We just do not realize that we tend to blame others rather than blaming ourselves. Quite commonly, a guy will try to deflect their mistakes by placing the blame on another person for an incident that happened. Subsequently, everything becomes messy. Another ‘wonderful’ example that can be seen is by the people of Malaysia who constantly blame the government for everything. Though I would not go as far as to say that everything that the government does is acceptable, I believe that people should try to work together with the government in spite of the government’s shortcomings.
Each person can contribute to the country in many different ways. You do not have to be the Prime Minister to change something. Start with something small like getting involved in community work or helping the poor by donating money and material possessions. I believe that Malaysia is a wonderful place to live in. I expect much from it in terms of education, environment, the economy and also the diverse culture. So what say you? Forward? Or not forward?
Image taken from here.