C-H-A-N-G-E

 

Change: the very word that draws resistance. Not many people like to leave their 'comfort zone' to walk through unchartered territories. Most would live each day trying to maintain the status quo. Yet, history has proven time and again that in order for nations to progress, reformations to occur, things to happen, change must take place.

Recently, the political stage around the globe has been dramatically shaken. Oppression, poverty, social injustice, corruption and dictatorship have taken their toll on many. While those in authority refuse (or fail) to address the outcries of the affected segments, for fear of compromising their power and status; the others are becoming more and more aggressive in venting their anger and disproval of the present governance. One may view these groups as advocates for trouble, but without them, change will never occur.

Australia has recently witnessed some significant changes with the newly-formed Labour government under the leadership of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. A public apology was finally made to the aboriginals for the pain of the 'Stolen Generations', after so many years of ignorance. The Kyoto protocol to reduce carbon emission by 2012 was ratified, in a concerted effort to fight global warming. Besides, Australia is also working towards improving social justice and industrial relations by increasing funds to the homeless and replacing the Howard's Workchoices. On the global scale, the government is planning to pull out the Australian troops in Iraq as well as to strengthen economic ties with China. This is change!

America has also recently seen a beacon of light with the emergence of Illinois senator Barack Obama with his “message of change”. The Bush government has made several miscalculated judgments during his reign, notably the US-led invasion of Iraq which has drawn several oppositions around the globe. Also, despite being one of the greatest consumers of energy, America has refused to ratify the Kyoto protocol, making it the only major developed country that is yet to join the pact. As long as the Republican still rules America, one can only expect the situations to exacerbate. Will Obama be able to deliver his promise of change, should he be elected President of the United States come this November? One can only hope; and to hope is certainly better than not to.

Now lets talk about something closer to home, the Malaysia’s 12th general election. Having been ruled by the coalition party, Barisan National for over 50 years now, how much change have we witnessed? Are we satisfied with the developments thus far? Could a different government do better? Our Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi, has always talked about ‘report card’. I guess it’s time we start evaluating the country’s report card to see how far we have progressed since 1957. While I don’t deny that several improvements have been made to the economic and social environment, some persistent problems remain unresolved. Corruption is rife, racial segmentation is prevalent, public delivery system is deplorable…just to name a few.

I was personally impressed when I first read the 9th Malaysian Plan, among which is to develop 1st class mentality (Islam Hadhari concept), to improve the public delivery system, to fight corruption as well as to curb socio-economic inequalities. But no matter how good a plan is, it remains only a plan until it is being executed. Four years have gone by, but what have we accomplished? Frivolous efforts were made, but to no avail. Could DAP, PAS or PKR do better should they be elected? I don’t think so; at least not for now. Then why vote for them? To increase the voice of the oppositions in order to pressure BN to move. One will often not budge until he is challenged. And our government certainly needs that now.

In conclusion, I wish to quote a significant dialogue between the father and the son in the movie ‘Ratatouille’. The father has just shown the son an appalling scene of dead rats hanging on the wall. He warned his son not to get too close to the humans or he’ll end up being one of the victims. Here is how the dialogue goes:

Son: No dad, I don’t believe it. You are telling me that the future is…and can only be more of this?

Dad: This is the way things are, you can’t change nature.

Son: Change is nature, dad…the part we can influence…and it begins when we decide (and he started to walk away)

Dad: Where are you going?

Son: With luck, FORWARD!

All the best Malaysia!