On the right track, I wish!

As I was looking at all those nostalgic photos uploaded on a former classmate’s Facebook album, it reminded me of the good old school days when we were all still naive and oblivion of hard fact in life out there.

Back then, what we knew was just to study and play hard and nothing else, to ensure a brighter future just as many parents would often tell their kids.

More than 10 years after, with many of my batch now contributing to the income tax, the naivety and oblivious self of ours during school days have grown into hard fact which at times is hard to chew.

In this country which is made up of multi ethnicity, the fact is that no single ethnic group can get the best of both worlds.

I still remember the dejected look of some of my former classmates who were unsuccessful in their local public universities application right after our Form Six despite scoring good results.

As expected, these classmates were so disappointed that they lost hope and direction in their own homeland with some of them leaving for greener pasture in neighbouring country.

Fast forward and today. In less than a month after assuming office as Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has won accolades from Malaysians for his bravery and far looking vision, I would say, to open up the economy i.e. lifting of 30% bumiputra equity in 27 sub sectors and the decision to raise foreign equity for investment banks and insurers to 70 per cent but retained a 30 per cent limit in local commercial banks in a mixed bag of incentives to boost the financial services industry.

Then the Cabinet decided that minors will remain in the common religion of their parents when they married, even if one parent later became a Muslim.

Not bad I must say, at least this is a good start for something better provided this so-called change can be sustained and further accelerated and not susceptible to political pressure.

Few days ago, a deputy minister reportedly caught some doctors reading newspaper and doing own stuff while patients making a beeline waiting for consultation in a public hospital.

This is not an uncommon sight I must say in public sector for anyone who has ever gone to any government departments for whatever purpose.

The mere four per cent Chinese representation in the civil service is something the new premier must address sooner than later to show his sincerity in the 1 Malaysia concept.

But let us not stereotype into Malays, Chinese or Indians for we are all Malaysians who have pledged unquestionable loyalty the King and the country.

What I wish to see is a civil service which comprises of qualified and dedicated staff only and not the ones seen by the said deputy minister who may be oblivion of the people’s predicament dealing with public sector.

Why doesn’t the government see the beauty in the array of colours in a rainbow and try to make civil service more versatile and of better quality which Malaysians have long yearned for?

It is most heartening when the Prime Minister said the civil service must give value added services to the taxpayers and that they should not be short changed.

Come this July when the local public institutions result is announced, do not be surprised to see top students being turned down by universities for some unexplained or X-file reasons.

While meritocracy has been the practice for the public universities intake, many of us still have doubt over its implementation due to the low intake of the so-called pendatang.

If Datuk Seri Najib can liberalise the civil service and public universities intake, I am sure he meant what he said by 1 Malaysia.

But if he doesn’t, then perhaps the politicians from the ruling coalition may just well be prepared for another political onslaught in the next general election, except that this time it may be disastrous or even fatal politically for the BN.

The time is still on the BN’s side to make the necessary amends to the many flawed systems in this country.

The time for brainstorming is long overdue and what is urgently needed at this point of time is for the government to walk the talk.

The PR led state governments I must acknowledge are doing just fine with its support level still remain intact judging from its winning streak in 4 out of five by-elections.

If the PR isn’t good as claimed, then it must be the BN which is so bad that people just want to teach them a lesson by simply voting for the opposition.

While what I hope for here is easier said than done, but if the politicians have the political will to bring this country forward, not backward, then I believe what Datuk Seri Najib is doing now is on the right track and a new beginning may have just begun.

I wish, yes I wish it may come true but if it doesn’t, life still goes on and we just have to treat it as yet another political theatrical.