by Chandra Muzaffar
Most Malaysians would welcome the proposal by the Muhyiddin government in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the proclamation of the Rukunegara to incorporate elements of the national philosophy in the events and activities of the 2020 National Day celebration.
According to the
Communications and Multimedia Minister, Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah, a number of agencies under his ministry would
be involved. Attempts will be made to
inculcate every Malaysian with an appreciation of, and a commitment to, the
Rukunegara. As a long-term plan, Rukunegara education will be implemented in
schools, universities and other organisations.
It will be recalled that more than three years
ago, on the 23rd of January 2017, a small group of activists had
launched a public campaign to strengthen the role of the Rukunegara in the
nation’s life. It was felt that since in concrete terms the direction the
nation was moving was unclear especially with contradictory policy positions on
what Malaysia’s identity and character were, there was a need to reiterate our
commitment to the national philosophy with its clearly articulated aspirations
and principles enunciated by His Majesty the fourth Yang Di Pertuan Agong on
the 31st of August 1970. Besides, the significance of the five
aspirations and five principles had proven their worth and value through the
trials and tribulations of time and it was only right that Malaysia re-affirmed
its fidelity to the Rukunegara.
Initially, the
seven of us thought that the best way to empower the Rukunegara would be to
make it the preamble to the Malaysian Constitution. But the process was fraught
with severe difficulties primarily because the Barisan Nasional, the ruling
coalition, did not have a two-thirds majority in parliament, a prerequisite for
amending the Constitution. Neither did the BN show any interest in this
citizens’ endeavour on behalf of the Rukunegara. We then turned to the
Conference of Rulers for guidance.
On the 10th
of October 2017, the Conference of Rulers confronted with other issues with an
ethno-religious connotation, issued a lucidly worded statement through the
Keeper of the Royal Seal which inter alia
emphasised
that the aspirations and the principles of the Rukunegara should become “the
guiding compass for all, leaders, administrators and the people as a whole.”
Armed with this
clarion call from the Rulers, our Rukunegara campaign group decided to get in
touch with the new Pakatan Harapan federal government that came to power
through the ballot-box on the 9th of May 2018. I sent the Conference
of Rulers’ statement and a number of other documents pertaining to the
Rukunegara to the Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and all the other 221
Members of Parliament. Our plea to them
was simple and straightforward: to adopt a parliamentary resolution endorsing
the Rulers’ statement to uphold the Rukunegara as the “guiding compass” for the
nation and the people. There was not
even an acknowledgement from the Prime Minister and the vast majority of MPs. There were only four positive replies including one from a Pakatan Harapan backbencher.
When the Pakatan
Harapan government collapsed at the end of February 2020, and Tan Sri Muhyiddin
Yassin was sworn in as the new Prime Minister on the 1st of March, I
saw another opportunity to push for the empowerment of the Rukunegara. All the
documents pertaining to our earlier campaign were handed over to one of the
Prime Minister’s aides on the 15th of June. The immediate response
we have witnessed in the last few days is a measure of Muhyiddin’s commitment
to the Rukunegara as a vital piece of architecture in the creation of a united,
democratic, just, liberal and progressive Malaysian nation. It offers a glimmer
of hope for the present and for the future.
In developing
the Rukunegara for its role in nation-building, the Rukunegara campaign group
had also elaborated upon the commentaries on the aspirations and principles of
the national philosophy first prepared in 1970. The revised commentaries focus
upon issues that have gained currency in recent decades. They can be accessed
through perpaduan.org, the website of Yayasan Perpaduan Malaysia, the successor
to Yayasan 1Malaysia which served as the secretariat to the Rukunegara campaign
group.
While a deeper
understanding of the Rukunegara would be most useful, what really matters is
the actual application of its aspirations and principles. Society as a whole ---and not just the
government of the day --- should assess and evaluate the implementation the
Rukunegara. To what extent have we lived up to the rule of law, one of the
principles of the Rukunegara or how much have we achieved in our journey
towards a progressive society orientated
towards science and technology?
It is our
failure to assess critically and honestly the implementation of our lofty
aspirations and principles that often results in a huge gap between a nation’s
ideals and its realities.
Dr. Chandra
Muzaffar was the former Chair of Yayasan Perpaduan Malaysia.
Kuala Lumpur.
20 June 2020.