Dr Mahathir Mohamad has burdened (and continues to burden) Malaysia with many more ugly legacies.1. He has also DEVALUED our Culture and Institutions.
2. Most of all he has DEVALUED the Trust we have in each other, a vital but scarce asset in a plural society.
I am privileged not to have met the man; thus my analysis is strictly based on his policies and performances as a leader.
It is not coloured by personal feelings or show of gratitude. I am spared the mudah lupa (ingrate) epithet.
This upcoming leadership contest would again assault our sensibilities, especially of Malay culture. Forget about our budi bahasa (gracious) and halus (soft) ways.
Those previously found guilty of “money politics” (that’s corruption, to the rest of us) like then Umno vice-president Mohd Isa Abdul Samad and allegedly Umno Youth Chief Khairy Jamaludin would again be elected to top positions.
As for Isa and Khairy, the former is now put in charge of the multi-billion ringgit Felda, the latter, a cabinet minister.
That too, is part of Mahathir’s legacy.
Mahathir’s legacy is the overall negative culture he fostered in Umno Baru. In any other culture or jurisdiction, that young man would not even be nominated for dog catcher.
That is Mahathir’s legacy, its destructiveness is pervasive and permanent precisely because it is less obvious.
Mahathir’s scathing and relentless criticism of his successor, Abdullah, cannot hide the obvious fact that he (Mahathir) was responsible for the mess. He appointed Abdullah.
Similarly, Mahathir was highly instrumental in Najib replacing Abdullah. Mahathir’s excuse of there being no one else is just that – an excuse. Two successive dud appointments to the highest office of the land, another of Mahathir’s ugly legacies.
Mahathir never tires of reminding us about Petronas Twin Towers, the gleaming highways, and the KLIA, all built during his administration. He also used to brag about Putrajaya, the multibillion-dollar new capital city. Not anymore.
Yes, Putrajaya sports some futuristic bridges but it must be THE ONLY CAPITAL IN THE WORLD that does NOT have any foreign embassies.
It is pathetic that after having served as the nation’s longest serving chief executive, Mahathir could point only to those physical monuments as his legacy.
We have to constantly remind ourselves that:
- the deterioration of our institutions (especially our schools and universities),
- the pervasiveness of corruption,
- the soiling of our culture (especially Malay culture), and
- the erosion of the trust we have in each other
ARE THE VERY CORE OF HIS LEGACY.
It took the Soviets generations to free themselves of the grip of Stalin’s ghost. It took the Chinese decades to recognise and then overcome Mao’s malignant feng shui.
How long will Malaysians, Malays specifically, take to escape the hantu (ghost) of Mahathirism?
Will we ever?
- Dr Bakri Musa
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.