Will there be an UMNO leader who will rise to restore UMNO to its founding decades when UMNO Presidents were known for their unquestioned integrity and honesty and their acceptance that Malaysia is a plural society?
One thought that has been nagging me is whether an UMNO leader will rise who will restore UMNO to its founding decades when UMNO Presidents were known for their unquestioned integrity and honesty and their acceptance that Malaysia is a plural society?
Are great and inspiring episodes when Bapa Malaysia Tunku Abdul Rahman sold his house in Penang to fund the running of UMNO, when the second Prime Minister, Tun Razak, gave his sons a stern lecture on integrity and honesty when they asked that a swimming pool be built at the Prime Minister’s residence at Sri Taman, and when the third Prime Minister, Tun Hussein Onn, whose integrity and honesty were legendary, are to be fables of the past never to be seen again in Malaysia?
It cannot be, for Islam, the official religion, like all great religions in the world, teaches integrity and honesty.
It was only this month that the Sultan of Perak, Sultan Nazrin Muizuddin Shah, at the swearing-in ceremony of the new Perak Mentri Besar, spoke of the importance of integrity and honesty of public officials.
Sultan Nazrin said their stature was bestowed by Allah and one should not resort to corruption in exchange for power.
He said: "It is absolute that all of the powers owned come from Allah. Hence, (a leader) must submit his loyalty to the one God. He (a leader) will persevere in upholding what is right and will oppose what is wrong. His strength, the protection upon him and personal resilience come from Allah.
"He (a leader) does not need to offer bribes or gratifications in exchange for support that is not guaranteed to be entwined with loyalty.
"He also does not need to resort to committing threats to strengthen himself, as the power which he receives in return will be utterly brittle in nature."
Malaysia has produced a scholar par excellence on corruption in Syed Hussein Alatas, former Vice Chancellor of University of Malaya.
Recently, I came across an article by Dr. Mohamed Rafick Khan entitled “Pandemic vs Endemic” where he said that he is more concerned and worried about corruption than the Covid-19 pandemic, as “corruption is so bad that it has gone to every level of society”.
He said: “It’s hard to comprehend that a person who give salam, praise the Lord, and pray five times a day has no issue to engage in corrupt practice.
“How does one explain when people with positions have been convicted with corruption charges are enjoying a cult following and now being treated like a celebrity that is our last salvation to save the country?”
Is Dr. Rafick right?
The question whether there will be an UMNO leader who will rise to restore UMNO to its founding decades when UMNO Presidents were known for their unquestioned integrity and honesty and their acceptance that Malaysia is a plural society must be posed frontally.
Does the fifth Rukun Negara principle on “courtesy and morality” have no meaning whatsoever to the extent that we have Ministers in Cabinet who openly reject it?
Will anybody in UMNO answer?
I have said that 1MDB scandal would never have happened under the watch of Tunku, Tun Razak or Tun Hussein Onn. Dare anyone in UMNO contradict this?
That Malaysia is a plural society is a fact which is entrenched in the Merdeka Constitution 1957, Malaysia Constitution 1963, Rukun Negara 1970 and Vision 2020 announced in 1991.
Yet today, there are those in high places who regard statements upholding Malaysia as a multi-racial, multilingual, multi-religious and multi-cultural society and that all races and groups in the country must be given an equal stake under the Malaysian sun as dangerous and subversive.
Are we going forwards or backwards.
Can Malaysia still become a world-class great nation or are we condemned to the fate and ignominy of a kleptocracy, kakistocracy and a failed state, to be overtaken in the international arena in various fields of human accomplishments by one country after another?