Working to dispel the pessimism surrounding the nation

Sep 15, 2017

By Anil Netto
This weekend, we celebrate 54 years since the formation of Malaysia. We should be celebrating all the things that we have been blessed with — abundant natural resources and a diversity of cultures and spiritual traditions, our strategic location between economic powers, China and India, and the natural goodwill among Malaysians at the grassroots level.

But we cannot deny there is a mood of pessimism that seems to have engulfed the nation. And we will never be able to move forward unless we tackle the issues at the heart of the malaise afflicting the nation.

Some of these issues are related to the economy — the spiralling cost of living, a burdensome consumption tax, the quality of education, healthcare and university budget cuts, unaffordable housing and the high household debt. The entire economic model and, along with it, the education system, has to be revamped. The economy should serve the people, the masses — not just the 1 per cent. Productive potential has to be unleashed from the bottom up in a sustainable way instead of being focused on speculative investments like high-end real estate development and the financialisation of the economy.

Major projects should be evaluated based on whether they really benefit the ordinary people.

Environmental costs should be minimised — and for this to happen, environmental impact assessments must be genuinely independent. The human economy, which should serve people instead of vice versa, should be placed within the larger framework of the overall ecological system — instead of dominating the ecology and throwing it off balance.

Similarly, foreign investments, whether from multinational corporations or economic superpowers, should not be allowed to dictate the direction of the economy. Neither should we be beholden to large financial institutions whether local or foreign.

Each investment should be carefully studied to gauge the impact on the people, the economy and the environment. The debt burden on ordinary Malaysians must be reduced — and for that to happen we need to look at each component of household debt: housing loans, car loans, personal loans and credit card debt, and student loans to find out why Malaysians are borrowing so much. We would see that workers are not earning enough in comparison to the share of national income going to capital. We need to build a more egalitarian system by increasing financial allocations and subsidies for those sectors that serve the lower income group and help them to realise their full potential: education, healthcare and affordable housing. Political, ethical and spiritual transformation Corruption, cronyism and nepotism must be wiped out and illicit outflows of funds stemmed. Transparency, accountability and professionalism have to be upheld. We cannot afford to have a repeat of what happened to 1MDB and Felda.

In politics, we cannot go on exploiting issues of race and religion to win votes. It is time to stop this cynical exploitation which will only take us down a dangerous path of divide and rule. Instead, we need to move towards treating everyone as part of one family. Policies must be based on need (not race) and focus on inclusivity — not just for all Malaysians but for everyone who is resident in Malaysia. Unfortunately, there is a tendency to focus on issues affecting only Malaysian citizens — perhaps, because by law, only Malaysian citizens are allowed to vote, and thus politicians easily forget the interests of others in our land. Remember, we have about 15-20 per cent (5-6 million) of foreigners in Malaysia.

These foreigners include documented and undocumented migrant workers, refugees and asylum seekers, and foreign spouses. All of them have to be treated fairly.

It is unacceptable if hospital fees for foreigners are beyond their reach, thus discouraging them from seeking treatment for major ailments or diseases.

But it is no point talking about all these other issues if we don’t put on the agenda the elephant in the room — the issue that affects all of humanity: climate change. We need to make this a priority. Climate change should be considered in all major decisions we make.

It must be inculcated in the young, studied in schools and universities, considered by decision-makers in both the public and private sectors, deliberated in Parliament, preached in pulpits. Leaders of various spiritual traditions should urge their respective faithful to examine that carbon footprint as part of their examination of conscience.

We only have one Earth to share, and it is not right that some are taking more than their fair share and in so doing making the planet inhospitable for the rest of Creation. Indeed, tackling climate change and uplifting the poor and addressing the problems arising from migration cannot be looked at in isolation from the revamp of the economy to make it more human, more caring, more people-centred. For all this to happen we need not just political will, but everyone working hard to bring about the change we seek. Our commitment to change, reforms, transformation to a more caring nation begins with us and from there let the momentum ripple outwards.

We need to be inspired and infused by the Spirit as well for we are up against some powerful forces holding us back from realising our true potential as a nation, as a human family residing here in this beautiful land. But we can do it and triumph against the odds. Happy Malaysia Day!