The Malaysian Insider :: Opinion
The Malaysian Insider :: Opinion |
| Being decent does not get you brownie points Posted: 16 Jan 2013 03:48 PM PST JAN 17 — "Mr Van Doren, I am happy that you made the statement, but I cannot agree with most of my colleagues who commended you for telling the truth, because I don't think an adult of your intelligence ought to be commended for telling the truth." Steve Derounian, speaking as a member of a congressional sub-committee hearing, could have as easily been speaking about the Barisan Nasional (BN) government, its self-aggrandisement that #KL112 (the largest rally in Stadium Merdeka in living memory) was their doing and then the various people who have congratulated BN for finally allowing the democratic principle to assemble. The New York Republican's statement still remains universally relevant. He was clean-shaven and dotted his Ts Charles Van Doren was a contestant in a US TV quiz show in the late 1950s. The academic was from a learned and cultured family, so it was hardly awkward to accept that he was able to answer the show's trivia questions. If anyone could answer random, difficult and contextual questions, someone like him would be the one. And he did, he went on a winning streak, something like "Slumdog Millionaire" without the Mumbai gangsters. However, he was cheating. Van Doren, other contestants, the TV show's production team and countless others were indeed in a conspiracy to dupe the general public — staging performances to match the expectations of viewers. The producers and studio liked Van Doren, because he was a good fit, a genuinely good guy, so they did the obvious — give him the question and answers early so that he would not lose. They felt good was best served by manipulation. Still, cheating is not the centrepiece of my column today. It is about life-long cheaters seeking credit for doing the right thing. It is about the series of denials made by those accused of cheating, in the quiz scandal, leading to a congressional hearing. Because only then, when all the eyes were on him and an escape no more possible from the truth, did Van Doren admit to being part of the sham. But he was able to explain his own complicity in the matter by layered statements. He gave a lengthy explanation on how one thing led to another, that at all times he was trying to be noble and had everyone's interest at heart. Which is why so many of the congressional sub-committee members lauded Van Doren's "clear intentions" before Derounian spoke. Good job, BN! Now I turn my attention to the folks in BN and those singing praises of the permission granted for the rally in Stadium Merdeka. Firstly, the laws changed last year have been a result of decades of opposition from many notable Malaysians. They only decided to retire some laws and replace them with laws with questionable elements, like the high fine when the police rule your assembly of being illegal. They did it because not doing it was not an option anymore. In the lead-up to the rally, the stadium management did not engage the organisers. Mind you, this is a stadium largely unused all year round, and it might be in the interest of the administrators to roll the red carpet when external parties enquire. They agreed late. The police did not liaise with the organisers to see how best to ensure the least amount of inconvenience to the public. The announcement that there would be no riot police only came very late. There was widespread effort to warn the public not to participate through the media. Government servants were threatened with disciplinary action if they attended. University students were told early not to attend. The tertiary institutions later issued statements that none of their students were in any Kebangkitan Rakyat KL112. They even got external speakers into their campuses late last year to educate the undergraduates about the sins of rallies. The mainstream media undermined the value of the rally and after all that, after the dust settled somewhat, they are claiming they were the architects of everything meaningful out of the event. Soon, the prime minister will tell foreign audiences that it is BN's studiously erected transformations despite the meandering and negligent behaviours of the opposition groups that allowed #KL112 to transpire. Maybe it might be harsh to judge the general public's concession that BN has changed postures. I have to be careful here. Some of my friends have felt slighted that I had a go at them for commending the government after long last allowing an opposition-related rally without police intervention. They feel surely when such an obdurate force is willing to shift a centimetre it is not the time to begrudge them. There is merit, but when you factor these guys had to be dragged kicking and screaming at every junction and that they have not initiated any freedoms on their own accord, then the merit is thin and fragile as glazed sugar. The new Van Doren So, in a continuing public relations blitz BN is rewriting contemporary history. I am glad that there are changes, I never enjoyed being tear-gassed and hunted down around the streets of Kuala Lumpur by my police officers. And as much as BN wants to hold aloft its new attitude, it was behind my tear-gassing and chasing me down alleys for standing up for my democratic rights. So readers, you have to forgive me if I am to paraphrase Congressman Derounian: "I am happy BN allowed the rally, but bloody hell, I'm not about to give them an 'A' in modern governance." * This is the personal opinion of the columnist. |
| Posted: 16 Jan 2013 03:41 PM PST JAN 17 — Imagine this. A man of mixed Caucasian and Malaysian Chinese parentage, owning up to no religion, close friends with people of all races, religions and walks of life, whose passing is feted, not mourned by the rainbow of humanity that is Malaysia. A man who had no titles, no fancy designations, not a lot of money but the force of whose charm, intellect and generosity was such that he was unforgettable to practically all who knew him. All of us at some point have met people with such strength of character that they make us forget for a time our prejudices, beliefs and entrenched positions to bask in the glow of somebody that is completely open, non-judgemental, opinionated yet flexible. But they are a shrinking minority. In the cacophony of shrill voices that lay down edicts on matters best left between people and their gods, politicians who seem to have lost all sense of propriety and an increasingly polarised citizenry that only accepts the black or white of "for us or against us", civilised discourse is increasingly hard to come by. We talk a lot at each other, but very little with each other. The outlook is truly bleak when the education system seems to be hell bent on taking the country backwards, when all the races feel cheated by the way education and employment opportunities are distributed, when religious grouses top the headlines and the best talents feel compelled to leave the country. Yet hope springs eternal in the human breast. Hope that those of us who remember a gentler, more empathetic time will try and pass on those values to those under our care, hope that at least in some instances our common humanity will triumph over narrow partisan interests, hope that a spiritual nation will learn to live and let live, and hope that Malaysia can rediscover a sense of shared destiny, where co-operation wins over supremacy of one over the other. Life can be cruel, short and unforgiving and very often not worth the effort, but sometimes all it takes is one heart-warming story to uplift us, inspire us and help to make a difference to us and others. People who live on in our memories are those who understood the value of relationships in an uncertain, ephemeral world. People who had the time, empathy and a willingness to listen, people who understood the difference between what is important and what is urgent. Leading a full life does not necessarily come at the expense of others, and does not need the crutches of arrogance and bigotry. Maybe a little bit of humility and self-doubt is the key to a life worth celebrating. Here's to Steven Loong who truly exemplified what it means to live life to the fullest. * This is the personal opinion of the columnist. |
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