The Luxury of Choice

It is almost on rare occasions that I write publicly, and the last was 4 years a
go. Things were different then. I was a pessimist for Malaysia and for good reas
ons. The country's direction was seemingly out of our control either of the perc
eived heavy handed politics of the incumbent government or simply my assumption
of Malaysians' loath of change as demonstrated four years earlier in the 2004 el
ections. But, that was history. What we have today is almost an unprecedented op
portunity to make our case and tip the balance of power to us, the Rakyat. Voids
for liberty have opened up for us to fulfill and it has not been wider.
I believe that I have grown past being inclined to any political sides. Argument
s for and against anybody are very likely to be dreadfully difficult to qualify
or quantify. Thus, I am writing this as a neutral Malaysian. However, having sai
d that, our country is at a point in history where there is an obvious choice. A
nd my intent is for us to realize that there lie a clear option for us to change
our course, albeit with some difficulty, that would yield upon us a better and
stronger nation.
Choice is scarce throughout our nation's political history. Uncontested candidat
es and landslide wins are prevalent. We need to grasp that this practically mean
s we have a monopoly where certain people inclined towards a single organization
will have the advantage to stay in power. To take an analogy in sports, we have
a lopsided match where result would often be similar to if you pit Wigan Athlet
ics against Manchester United, the latter with resources to secure the best play
ers and motivate them will most likely win. Of course the underdog wins once in
a while; however, it will always be a system with a side stronger, a side more d
ominant, and that is not a good thing.
Unlike before, what we need to do presently is fairly simple. We need to be stra
tegic. What I meant by being strategic is to set the preconditions right and kic
k start a stronger and a more viable option that we could utilize as our leverag
e for an underperforming government. Unlike today, mistakes by the incumbent are
downplayed by their extensive owned media and successes by the opposition get t
ossed as a sidenote on page 8. The end game that we would aspire to have is that
both would balance each other, where underperformance will be equally consequen
tial on both sides. To put it simply, a system that corrects itself.
The core reasoning that we should carry throughout the imminent election is to s
et path for a more competent option. One would tend to say that "That is not my
job, if they want to get elected, they should work for it!" While it does ring s
ome truth, especially the second part, we should however not think as a client b
ut instead as an owner. We own this country, no one else, and thus we need to ac
t in her best interest. And for the time being, in the context of choosing gover
nance, having a strong alternative is prime.
On a final note, I'd like to remind us of this great opportunity that we need to
seize and work it to our advantage. We need to make the leap, and be the change
. And one day, you can tell your children or grandchildren that you realized the
change and you ensured them the luxury that you never had before, the luxury of
choice.