AUG 16 — Sabarudin: Welcome back to work guys, how was your Raya?
Kassim: Actually my Raya didn’t quite feel as festive or joyous as in previous years.
Dollah: Oh, funny you should say that. I feel the same way, but can’t quite put my finger on why.
Sabarudin: Hmm... I’ve been getting that sense as well. It seems like people are not really in the mood for Raya this year. Maybe it is because Raya fell on the 8th, so there was no advanced salary payment for civil servants this Raya month.
Dollah: That could be it. Plus my friend, who is a public school teacher, was complaining that the “duit raya” from the federal government this year was just RM500 — just like what the village people are getting in BR1M cash aid, she said. She even asked whether the village people are contributing as much as the teachers as both are getting the same amount of money.
Kassim: Haha, I heard grouses about that too. My cousin is also in the public service and was upset that there was no half-month bonus this year for Raya.
Sabarudin: Well, as great as giving “duit raya” to civil servants is in respect of the government’s popularity, it is really taxing on the government’s part to keep doing so. The RM500 for civil servants and RM250 for pensioners alone add up to about RM835 million, I think. If it was half-month or even one month bonus, the figure would be mind-boggling.
Kassim: I guess you have a point. What with our national debt-to-GDP ratio getting dangerously high and Fitch ratings agency revising our outlook, the government needs to be more prudent with taxpayers’ money despite the unpopularity of reining in bonuses and “aids.”
Dollah: Of course, I don’t imagine the average civil servant would be concerned about our economy — they just want their “duit raya” and bonuses.
Sabarudin: And even though it feels less festive, Jalan TAR was no less crowded to my eyes this year. I heard people were shopping until the wee hours of the morning.
Kassim: But I don’t think that’s all there is to it. Not everyone is in public service expects “duit raya” from the government.
Dollah: Well, my wife told me that her Raya this year felt a little bit incomplete because her parents’ house did not have rendang on Raya morning. Also, they did not have time to fix the lightings this year.
Kassim: Oh, no rendang? That’s sad!
Dollah: But we had beef rendang on the second day, so it was not a total “disaster”, haha. Plus my own parents’ house does not usually have rendang but we substitute it with other dishes.
Sabarudin: I guess rendang and Raya lightings are the things that set the Raya mood for your wife, Dollah.
Dollah: I guess so. But then again wouldn’t that be the case for everyone when it comes to Raya?
Kassim: I don’t think so. Sure, there are certain things that we associate with Raya like dishes and bonuses, but I think on a deeper level, everyone has their own ideas of what adds that little bit of extra cheer into their Raya.
Sabarudin: I think so too. As for me, I did not have a long Raya break like the both of you, so the time I got to spend at home for Raya was relatively shorter than usual this year. So that dampened my Raya cheer somewhat because what I really look forward each Raya is meeting my family and relatives and hanging out with them.
Dollah: Yes, I think that is something to think about. At the heart of it, the things that really matter is what brings meaning to our Raya every year, regardless if it feels less festive or not.
Kassim: A meaningful Raya is not necessarily the most festive compared to previous years. In this sense “meaning” comes back to why we celebrate Raya in the first place.
Dollah: That’s simple. To celebrate our victory of having reined in our desires for the whole of Ramadan, of course.
Sabarudin: True. As for my wife and me, our Raya was a little bit more meaningful this year even though it did feel less festive in terms of celebration.
Kassim: Oh, why so?
Sabarudin: Because when we looked back after a few days of Raya, we thought that this year we did not waste money on unnecessary purchases like excessive clothes and whatnot. Apart from some new clothing, we mostly spent on food, which did not go to waste since our family members are not shy eaters.
Kassim: I see, so no impulse purchases that you regret later lah, right? That’s great, Sabarudin.
Dollah: It would have been a shame if we managed to practise self-restraint for the whole of Ramadan only to give in to temptation the moment it ends. I think I’ll aim to bring that sort of meaning to my Raya next year too.
* This is the personal opinion of the columnist.
