Wu-ing the nation

As a Malaysian born and bred in the peninsula, I have a vague connection with Sabah and Sarawak.

After all, September 16 only became a public holiday five years ago.

This detachment adds to the already dividing factors we peninsula folks like to talk about: that of class, religion, ethnicity, and which EPL club one supports.

Ironically, when we talk about the spirit of muhibbah, we always use Sabah and Sarawak as examples. Yet, we also see the divide Sabah and Sarawak has with the peninsula.

Further, every issue plaguing the nation is seen through racist lens. As fellow columnist, Hafidz Baharom said, this racist point of view is so ingrained in all of us that we don’t even notice we're doing it.

Thinking about this on the lead up to September 16 this year, I have to admit to feeling hopeless.

Further, the “red shirt” rally planned on this sole day, belatedly recognised as the uniting factor of our nation 47 years after the rightful birthday of Malaysia, makes me sad.

David Wu is walking from Kuala Lumpur to Rantau Panjang to raise funds for Projek Wumah. – Facebook pic, September 16, 2015.I see only ego and a childish tantrum to claim “my rally is bigger than yours” in response to Bersih 4.

I have long felt that my nation is sick, and it is a time of healing that we need. We do not need new infections or adverse reactions to our lifelong chronic disease. We need therapy.

Lo and behold, I did not have to look far.

Following the east coast floods, a friend whom I know from starting I am #26, David Wu, started a project aptly named Projek Wumah to rebuild houses in a village in Rantau Panjang.

This humble effort has garnered a lot of support, attributed to David's charming personality and the empathy of fellow Malaysians.

While this project looked like just one of many, I noticed that David's dedication was driven by more than empathy.

It was only recently that I learnt of his sister's passing and how he himself needed to heal from the grief. This, I understand very well, having ran a marathon for my late father recently.

David started an effort to walk from Kuala Lumpur to Rantau Panjang, to raise funds for Projek Wumah.

The date he chose to begin this walk coincided with the date of another tragedy which the world is still healing from, September 9.

This date was personal to David, as it is his sister's birthday. Dr (Mdm) Wu Loo Yee died last year, shy of her 50th birthday.

Every day of his walk is dedicated to different groups of people. While Day 1 was very personal and dedicated to his beloved sister, Day 2 was dedicated to friends, Day 3 to Mary Anne, a mother who is caring for her son Ethan who has leukaemia, Day 4 to the Orang Asli, and Day 5 to the differently abled; or as politically incorrect as it gets, the cacat people as referenced by Patrick Teoh himself!

This day-by-day insightful reflections and dedications are updated daily on social media by David and another inspiring acquaintance of mine, Mujahidin Zulkifli, who is part of the team supporting David to “Just Wu It”.

Getting to know both these gentlemen through I am #26 debunked the myth that only bad is propagated in social media. Here are examples that social media is just a tool, and if used wisely can connect like-minded people to work for causes they believe in, and translates keyboard action to implementations in real life which positively affect others.

Going beyond sympathy and sentiments and boldly taking action.

This is an example of the healing our country needs. The effort need not be backed by a particular ministry or funded by an NGO or political party, neither does it need to be a grand idea that receive donations only from a private, unnamed donor.

Yes, David is undertaking a mammoth task of walking 600km from Kuala Lumpur to Rantau Panjang. Yes, such an effort makes him an ultramarathoner six times over – without medal or glory. He started this only wanting to heal himself.

Yet, I believe deep down, he is slowly but surely is a catalyst in healing this nation.

I am not asking every one of us to leave our jobs and families behind and start walking around the country.

Every one of us can do our parts in our everyday lives by taking the biggest lesson from this project – that is, we all need to heal ourselves first before we can undertake the insurmountable yet not impossible task of healing this nation.

There are many issues plaguing us: the instability of the global economy and our weakening ringgit, lack of government transparency, religious extremism, politicking of religion and education, unexplained arrests and raids – to name just a few. We have complained and expressed our anger and exasperation long enough. It is time to do.

It is time to Just Wu It.

Are we ready, Malaysia? – September 16, 2015.

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