Don't tear the seams of Malaysia

PJ Moorthy - Malaysia Instinct

Don't cut the last cake and split it 10 ways without first replicating the lost recipe. Once you cut it, you will have 10 recipes of different proportions!

Mexico, populated by around 6.6million residents. Largely hot summers, typical dessert climate but also has cool forest in the north, with famous sites in the likes of The Grand Canyon.

There really isn't any similarities here, but one thing that has hit the American state might just happen here in Kuala Lumpur one day.

Though historical beginnings defer on the origins of Arizona if one chooses to speak to different people there, it is largely believed that Arizona was made a apart of the US after the American-Mexican war which resulted in the then newly formed republic of Mexico having lost the territories and compensated for it. It has s strong Spanish history, and die to its proximity to Mexico, has to deal with a large number of Mexicans who enter US illegally.

Malaysia on the other hand has a large border with Indonesians, but having the Straits of Malacca as a natural deterrent for illegal entry, it is vastly different from Arizona vis-a-vis Mexico. Naturally, the difference in economic strength between US and Mexico makes the former a much sought after location for those seeking economic riches. As the same with Malaysia vis-a-vis Indonesia.

But if one cares to look at the similarities, it will be staring Malaysians at the face.

As with the Mexicans to Arizona, most were brought in to help in economic activities, thus gaining legal citizenship much later, and hence become naturalised Americans.

As with the Chinese and Indians to Malaya then, most were brought in by the British to help in the same, to grow Malaysia economically, and in their efforts gaining them citizenship and naturalisation as Malaysians.

But what comes after, many years after the American-Mexican war is the influx of illegal immigrants into Arizona that had the lawmakers up in arms collectively to pass into law a motion to authorise the legal request for proof of citizenship in their efforts to quell the rising entry of these, leaches, call them if you may.

And this in Malaysia might just happen if there is a blurring of rights, and guarantees of constitution are overlooked in the overzealous efforts to chase that change that so few are asking. The bumiputera rights are rightfully enshrined in the constitution and is therefore protected by it. The calamitous efforts of the opposition in their quest to gain more votes from their supporters and the fence sitters who are calling for the doing away of it, creating a 'fair and equal' disbursement of rights, so it seems.

This is akin to the Mexicans who mask themselves as Americans saying that they have the right to stay and demanding that their citizenships unquestionable rights as any Americans. Wouldn't that be nice!

There is a clear distinction of law and rights, and to the Americans, their rights is to establish the citizen from the alien.

Here in Malaysia, doing away with the rights of Bumis is the same as getting the constitution changed to acknowledge that Mr.Mutusamy who hails from Kerala 20 years ago, peddling 'Putumayam' who goes back to Kerala every 5 years to build his dream home that houses his family and those of his in-laws and in-laws of the in-laws, as one of their own, giving him basic land rights and government assistance.

Whereas Mr.Xiao Ching the right to bring his family and send his children to SJKC, granting access to the previously defined 'tanah hak Melayu' in gratitude for his father's contribution in the tin mines of Kampar, and expecting Pak Ali, whose nine children have been finding it hard to break in to the workforce, when the likes of IBM is hiring Malaysian graduates from Ivy League Universities.

Already forced to compete with the 65% ration of bumi students that make up the composition of public higher education institutions, Pak Ali's children have to also compete to enter real paying jobs, something that does not seem to affect their counterparts of Chinese origins.

The economic strength is held by the Chinese, and the Malays do not begrudge that, so why are the rest then begrudge the Malays of their rights that are guaranteed by the constitution?

This writer is of the opinion that Malaysia pre 2008 was far better off, for that was the time that Malaysians were collectively united in their goal, which was achieved through the ballot box. Post 2008, they have since gone their own ways forgetting the bond of unity that they once shared.Don't cut the last cake and split it 10 ways without first replicating the lost recipe. Once you cut it, you will have 10 recipes of different proportions!