Call on Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or region, to unite against the politics of hate, lies, falsehoods and fear which are the greatest enemies of making Malaysia a world-class great nation
I have just seen a WhatsApp which has gone to the core of the problem why Malaysians are so polarised and divided, why Malaysia is losing out in the vision to become a world-class great nation and why Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or region, must unite against the politics of hate, lies, falsehoods and fear which are the greatest enemies of making Malaysia a great world-class nation.
This WhatsApp said:
“Nga Kor Ming menang saman fitnah.
“Ngeh Koo Ham menang saman fitnah.
“Teresa Kok menang saman fitnah.
“Lim Guan Eng menang saman fitnah.
“Tony Pua menang saman fitnah.
“Liew Chin Tong menang saman fitnah.
“Yeoh Bee Yin menang saman fitnah.
”Semua ini Cina non-Muslim DAP yg difitnah org Melayu.
“Tak malu ka tengok berita Jamal terpaksa mohon maaf secara terbuka kerana fitnah orang DAP. Dimana maruah ahli politik Melayu
“Dan diketahui umum - “Najib, Rosmah didakwa kes rasuah “Zahid didakwa kes rasuah “Ku Nan didakwa kes rasuah “Isa Samad didakwa kes rasuah “Musa Aman didakwa kes rasuah “Semua ini pemimpin politik Melayu Muslim “Ramai ahli politik Melayu fitnah ahli politik Cina hanya kerana tujuan politik. Akhirnya ramai umat Melayu di kampung-kampung tertipu kerana kekurangan ilmu.
“Berdoalah semoga mentality bangsa Melayu ini berubah. Baik dari pemimpin hingga ke rakyat bawahan...utk berubah ia memerlukan reform mentaliti. Reform bermula dari pendidikan[LKS1] awal, agama dan akhlak dan didikan jati diri, mentaliti utk yg sudah dewasa ini.
“Kita orang Muslim Melayu majority mesti berubah daripada yg kurang integriti kepada amanah kerana sayangkan agama, bangsa Melayu dan negara tercinta ini.”
In 2014, I won my defamation suit against Utusan Melayu (M) Bhd over a defamatory article published the previous year.
Malaysia must move away from the politics of hate, lies, falsehoods and fear which are not only against the teachings of the great religions and civilisations which have made Malaysia their home, but are the very reasons why we have not lived up to the vision of Bapa Malaysia, Tunku Abdul Rahman, to be “a beacon of light in a disturbed and distracted world”.
The Malaysian Constitution and the Rukun Negara set out the basis for a united and great Malaysian nation, and the challenge facing Malaysians is whether we can succeed in nation building welding the diverse races, religions, languages and cultures that have made Malaysia their home to become a model of an united, tolerant, successful, progressive and prosperous plural entity in a complex and plural world.
There is a dangerous tendency in Malaysia of late, where politics had been contaminated by the vicious and toxic politics of hate, lies, falsehoods and fear where instead of building tolerance, trust and confidence among the diverse races, religions, languages and cultures that meet in confluence in Malaysia, there is an insidious attempt to breed suspicion, distrust and hatred among the diverse races, religions, languages and cultures so as to poison the well of Malaysian nation-building
I myself had been the most demonized character in Malaysia for the past half a century.
I was accused of being a communist, in fact, a relative of Chin Peng; responsible for the May 13, 1969 riots, leading the street demonstrations in Kuala Lumpur shouting anti-Malay and anti-Islam slogans although I was never in Kuala Lumpur after the May 10, 1969 General Election; painted as quite a devil, a puaka, even jembalang; that I am anti-Malay, anti-Islam and at various times even anti-Indian, anti-Chinese educated Chinese , anti-English-educated Chinese; a quadruple agent of KGB, CIA, MI6 and the Australian Intelligence.
Before the 14th General Election, such toxic politics alleged that I will be the Prime Minister of Malaysia if Pakatan Harapan wins the polls.
When such lies and falsehoods were proved wrong after May 9, 2018 new lies and falsehoods were manufactured to allege that I am the real power in the Pakatan Harapan government in Putrajaya and that the other Pakatan Harapan leaders were merely my stooges and puppets.
I was even accused of having “swam” from China to Malaysia when I was 17 years old, although I was born and schooled in Batu Pahat.
Although the 14th General Election result on May 9, 2018 was a defeat and setback for the politics of hate, lies, falsehoods and fear, the purveyors of this vicious and toxic politics had intensified and even escalated their campaign after 2018.
Our greatest challenge in a New Malaysia is how to reach out to them, the Malays living in a completely Malay world, Chinese living in a completely in the Chinese world, Indians living in a completely Indian world, Kadazans living in a completely Kadazan world, Ibans living in a completely Iban world, to share with them a larger Malaysian picture and perspective – to share our ideals that this beloved Malaysian nation belongs to all of us, that we have a shared destiny.
We Malaysians have multiple identities - ethnic, religious, linguistic, cultural – but we share one common overriding identity as a Malaysian.
Nobody is asking any Malaysian to forget that he or she is a Malay, Chinese, Indian, Kadazan, Iban or Muslim, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Sikkh, Taoist, but everyone is first and foremost a Malaysian.
That is our Malaysian Dream.
Can this spirit of oneness as Malaysians transcending race, religion, region or party politics prevail in our country so that we are not distracted from our Malaysian Dream to build a great Malaysia for all Malaysians?
How do we nurture the bond of oneness among Malaysians, regardless of race, religion, region or even party politics and stop the rise of intolerance, hatred, bigotry and extremism in our plural society through lies, fake news and false information?
Dare we continue to dream such a Malaysian Dream, and do more – oppose and expose the practitioners of the toxic and vicious politics of hate, lies, falsehoods and fear because they are the greatest enemies of the Malaysian Dream, seeking to breed suspicion, distrust and hatred among the diverse races and religions instead of building tolerance, trust and confidence among the diverse races and religions so that we can leverage on the assets of the diversity in Malaysia for the country to become a world top-class nation.
This is the reset in nation-building policies and directions that Malaysia needs in the coming years and decades.