RECENTLY, my boss and I were discussing the Shared Prosperity vision, when suddenly she asked: “What is life? What is prosperity?”
The first thing that came to mind was McDonald’s Prosperity Burger, being a Malaysian who loves her food. I pondered briefly, then answered: “Life is love. Love is all that matters.”
Love makes people dare to dream, hope and endure. Love was the centrepiece of Malaysia’s transition of power in last year’s general election on May 9. Since then, a lot has happened while other things are waiting to happen.
Despite challenges, we remain solid as a nation. We are able to deal with the effects of transition while sustaining the complexities brought about by change. A former boss once said the only constant was change and if we did not manage change, change would manage us.
The government has been urging us to think out of the box and move away from our comfort zone. It starts with the re-caliberation of the government coffers from debt-driven, mega-projects to prudent and responsible spending.
We also find ourselves muddling in discomfort over the breakdown of the value system, normalisation of bribery, bigotry and civic mindlessness.
To understand how we got here, we must start by analysing how we came into being. Historically, independence was achieved in 1957.
Our transition from agriculture to industrialisation in the 1980s and 1990s re-engineered our societal make-up. The children of fishermen, farmers and labourers enjoyed greater education opportunities.
They became doctors, lawyers, engineers and accountants. Wealth accumulation and political powers were democratised and were no longer the sole privileges of the aristocrats and the select few.
Urban migration gave birth to new towns like Lembah Keramat, Melawati and Subang Jaya to cater to the housing needs of Malaysia’s middle class. My parents told me that growth took off in a manner that could be felt by ordinary people.
Those from a humble kampung could afford to buy a car, television and even a house in the city.
Internationally, we charted a middle path between the powerful blocs and emerging powers, marking ourselves out as non-aligned and principled. We co-founded Asean and made it a zone of peace, freedom and neutrality. We championed the causes of the Third World and spoke bravely on globalisation, terrorism, human rights, growth and development.
Going forward, we need attitudinal reform to challenge the conventional thinking and norms on politics, economics and society.
Public education needs a major reset. When public education fails, inequality widens making social mobility and cohesiveness hard to achieve. The cost of inaction will be detrimental.
At the societal level, the government must manage Malaysia for all Malaysians.
Leaders must rise above petty politics and lead all Malaysians — every one of us deserves a good quality of life. This is what shared prosperity means.
Malaysians are a resilient bunch as demonstrated by our diaspora abroad. We thrive in business, arts, sports and education. Think Yuna, Nicol David, Dr Amalina Bakri. They symbolise Malaysians who are outward- looking and dare to pursue their dreams and ambitions.
Leaders, ministers and politicians must work hard and deliver. When the temptations get too tough to resist, remember the fourth episode of the Game of Thrones Season 8, when Lord Varys openly disagreed with Queen Daenerys during their strategy meeting and begged her, “do not become what you have always struggled to defeat”.
The government must not become who they criticised. Recognition and respect will be earned through hard work, merit, honesty, ingenuity and sincerity to serve nation before self.
The people will be observing. Time, patience and history will be the judge of a leader’s intent, character and feat.
Remember Mao Zedong’s famous quote about the Soong sisters: “One loved money; one loved power, and one loved her country.”
Let us be Malaysians who love our country.
NUR AYUNI ZAINAL ABIDIN
Putrajaya, Federal Territories