JUNE 18 — It is quite amusing how, like the Americans, we use communism as a slur. God-hating liberal communist Jews apparently exist and are the secret hands with the agenda of bringing us down.
As long as we have mega-sales and a culture that worships cars, capitalism will remain our primary ideology. Materialism and money are what we truly worship, if we dig beneath the surface.
Yet we are not a culture that appreciates or celebrates honest toil. We bribe our policemen; we like trying to find a “cable” that will get us discounts, jobs or scholarships; the “easy” way to riches is securing lucrative government contracts where most of the money is skimmed off to pay for big houses, fancy cars and expensive holidays.
Mankind, whatever the science deniers say, have always been very good at adapting and evolving. Malaysians seem to have adapted to our government by becoming very good at “gaming” the system.
So what if a building collapses because the contractor used shoddy construction materials and had his cousin’s brother’s son who just graduated from university do the plans? The contractor was just “cari makan.”
So what if mega-projects are costing billions more than projected due to delays? We must be patient and understand that everyone involved also “cari makan”.
We justify so many things, from theft to lies to bribes, with “just cari makan”.
Just recently a couple who ran a shady business selling fake car oil additives and taking illegal deposits tried to beg for leniency as they had 19 children to support. While it is a sad thing the children had criminals for parents, does it really justify conning hundreds of people out of their own hard-earned money?
One thing many politicians and activists don’t do well is address bread-and-butter issues. You can’t appeal to Malaysian hearts and minds in this economy, you have to speak to that one thing that motivates the average Malaysian — the wallet.
As someone who doesn’t drive, I don’t understand how people can afford to. Calculating it in my head, the average car payment, petrol, maintenance, tolls and parking surely takes a huge chunk out of the average Malaysian salary. We shall not talk about those who somehow manage to buy super-expensive fancy imported cars (that are totally wasted on our roads, mind you) as if you can afford to pay the average salary of a CEO for a car, you can afford to maintain it.
I don’t believe in subsidies to be honest, but I believe that more can be done to help the average wage earner. All those mega-projects seem to be enriching the few to the detriment of the many. Take the Kidex highway, for instance. No matter how you slice it, there really is not much of a tangible benefit for its construction. What is certain though is that some people are going to make a lot of money by giving Malaysians just yet another reason to pay through their noses just to commute.
It is all very amusing that the harder they try to defend Kidex, the more obvious it is that the justifications are as convincing as a soap opera actor. A lot of bluster, a tad bit of melodrama and very little substance.
I am tired of peddling ideals and hope. What I’d rather hear are good arguments about making the money move better in this country, instead of congealing in the pockets of very fat cats. I don’t want to wake up to a future where we have shanty towns and homelessness everywhere while the rich and powerful continue to be holed up in their gated communities. The income divide is growing and yet we obsess about pig DNA and gatecrash a wedding.
Get your priorities right, Malaysia. We’re all your citizens, not just those who are very good at making money out of you.
* This is the personal opinion of the columnist.
