Finding our Malaysian pride in the most damning of times

In barely over a years’ time, Malaysia has quickly moved up to staggering levels of infamy for being one of the world’s most scandal-ridden countries of 2015.

If once we were known as Southeast Asia’s brightest potential, we have now become the region’s biggest laughing stock and object of pity.

Malaysians are a politically-hardy lot, a product of more than five decades of politicisation of everything from our education to religion to the economy. And yet, it’s difficult not to be affected by the growing public disenchantment over the unresolved financial scandals and political power-plays that have pretty much defined the last two years.

Humans deal with disappointment, fear and insecurity in different ways. When the chips are down, it’s an unfortunate but expected eventuality that people will try to look for greener pastures. These are times when the exodus of the country’s young and talented is usually most apparent.

Other ways that the disheartened deal with disappointment is to vent on social media, or to altogether just go the way of apathy. The former is unproductive, the latter crippling for nation-building.

The dismal economic outlook, the financial strain that most are facing and the acrimonious political situation here makes it easy to forget that Malaysia is a land worth believing in.

When your country is being dragged through mud by international media; when all people will talk about when you tell them you’re Malaysian is how amazed they are that our prime minister can go scot free even after admitting he received RM2.6 billion from an unnamed donor, there needs to be more to our foundation for national pride than food and cascading waterfalls.

While our culture, the amazing repertoire of national dishes and many idiosyncrasies of Malaysian life are the common reasons most of us will say we love this country, we actually have so many other reasons to stand tall and be proud as Malaysians.

Malaysians can draw their pride from the often under-appreciated fact that in spite of the odds, we have a Parliament that is vibrant with opposition representation.

After more than 50 years of Barisan Nasional(BN) rule, during which almost the entire election machinery, including media outlets was controlled by the government, the opposition alliance still managed to wrest over five states in 2008, and deny BN a two-thirds majority in Parliament.

The political landscape has changed much in the past eight years, and speaks volumes about the growing political awareness of our electorate, and the people’s growing desire for a different, better Malaysia.

The system is far from perfect, but this political diversity which we have is something that many of our more developed and economically stable neighbours can only ever dream about. It is something Malaysians must never take for granted and strive to maintain.

While 2016 will very much be a financially-challenging year for most Malaysians, especially those in the middle-to-lower-income brackets, our nation’s economic fundamentals remain strong for now, a testament to decades of strong policies and sheer hardwork.

Malaysians can draw their pride from the fact that for six consecutive years, Malaysia has ranked as one of the top 20 countries in the world to do business in. According to the World Bank Group report on ease of doing business last year, our country even topped the list among emerging economies in East Asia.

Changes in government policy over the past five years have helped create a highly competitive environment for our top industries, such as electrical & electronics, oil and gas, energy, as well as banking and finance.

Many young graduates from abroad seek jobs in these industries in Malaysia, as the country’s unique position as a thriving emerging economy gives them valuable learning opportunities which many developed countries may not be able to provide.

Our ringgit, though severely depreciated in value since the end of 2014, is also braving the storms and is one of Asia’s most resilient currencies. The ringgit is also expected to be a top performer among Asian emerging economies in the next three months.

In spite of a government lacking in clear and strong leadership currently and one that appears deficient in ethics and transparency, our country is clearly still standing strong.

Contrary to what naysayers will claim, we have not regressed to a state of decay, and are far from being a failed state. Our people are proud, yet unassuming; passionate but understated. We may be currently crippled by our political handicap, but we are far from destroyed.

Our track record of resilience proves that as long as Malaysia’s children don’t give up on her, and continue to work to build this country up, she will not only survive, but thrive.

It’s always in the most damning of times that our sense of national pride either dies, or burns brighter.

For our country to ever have hope of rising above its current state of disarray, her people must reignite their pride for Malaysia, and let it fuel their passion for demanding and working towards better governance, and a clean and transparent leadership. – February 14, 2016.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer, organisation or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.