1Malaysia idea can be defeated from within
THE STAR SAYS . . .
KUDOS to the Prime Minister for making an impression on Sarawakians, even in remote Long Banga and Ulu Baram.
Cynics may say Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak’s aid packages to Sarawak communities in recent days marked impending elections. Others say they marked his 57th birthday on Friday.
Regardless of the occasion, these development efforts are due to the citizens of this country as their birthright. As Najib himself put it, all Malaysians everywhere “must have equal opportunities to make a better life for themselves” through 1Malaysia.
This concept is laudable in uniting the people for the nation’s progress. Thus an Opposition bereft of better ideas can only attack it with trivia.
1Malaysia’s success or failure is also easy to detect. In the great sociocultural melting pot that is modern, heterogeneous Malaysia, the substance of 1Malaysia is constantly tested through its presence and absence.
The people themselves will be the judge of the application or abandonment of 1Malaysia. And few issues are as basic as those of livelihood and religious affiliation.
It is good that Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has clarified that non-Muslim societies established in schools before 2000 would not be banned. Those formed after 2000 would need prior approval from the Education Ministry.
Presumably this is because school societies must not discriminate through an exclusive membership. To exclude prospective members based on race or religion is discriminatory, violating the 1Malaysia formula.
Some non-Muslim societies in some schools have already been closed, much to the disquiet of pupils, parents and all 1Malaysia adherents. Little or no justification had been offered, when the fullest explanation should have been given from the start.
At the same time, a phantom of a council directive in Kangar seems to have ordered all karaoke outlets in Perlis to close during the month of Ramadan. The state had not issued the directive, and the likely council source has offered no explanation, only a news conference tomorrow.
To help protect the integrity of 1Malaysia, the Government needs to check overzealous officials. The misguided and deviationist antics of zealots can be more damaging to 1Malaysia, and Malaysia itself, than any trivial argument from the Opposition.
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