A Peep at my Own Backyard

Malaysia is a land of beauty, its culture is so diverse that the Government has no choice but to allow for the major festivities to be declared "public holidays" so that its people comprising the ruling Malays, Chinese, Indians, and an array of ethnic minorities that make up the population can celebrate such occasions with the traditional Malaysian styled "open" houses. This is when you can visit one another to say hello as a gesture of goodwill to mark the festival. Each and every celebration has with it a unique festive style, the Malays the Aidil Fitri, the Chinese their New Year, the Indians their Hindu festivals , the Dayaks in Sarawak their Gawai or harvest festival and the list for joy and merriment goes on and on if one takes into account all the minority groups in Sarawak and Sabah.

The above is well and good, harmonizing relationships during festivities is an excellent way to promote goodwill and mend bad relationships among family members as well as friends. Foes too can forget and forgive during such a time, if they so wish.

But what is not bright in the horizon is Malaysia's failure to address "civil liberties" in its entirety. Malaysians especially the Chinese and Indians are looking for equal opportunities in both the economic and social sectors, they want rights to ownership of land and more opportunities for higher education at tertiary level. Not until such issues are addressed in no uncertain terms, dissatisfaction and the call for equality will continue.

The present Government under the leadership of Najib Tun Razak and controlled by UMNO, a Malay based party has brought its partners in the coalition known as the Barisan Nasional to the forefront of politics in Malaysia but it is not without its own problems especially on the question of integrity of its leaders. Corruption has been a a hot issue and still will be.

The birth of a 2 party system is in the offing in this beautiful land. The opposition pact headed by the vibrantly composed Anwar Ibrahim is calling for change in almost all areas of the economy. They too are not free from their own internal squabbles and perhaps their popularity and acceptance by the people will soon be gauged during the 13th General Election which many quarters have predicted will be held in the 1st half of this year.

The opposition leader Anwar has recently been acquitted of a sodomy charge by Malaysia's High Court and that is in itself a big boost as far as his morale goes. As it is now, he's all geared up for the Elections and may "dethrone" Najib. But he cannot do that without the support of the majority of Malaysians.