IT'S August again! And going on September. It's that time of the year again when many Malaysians get into a frenzy about renewed patriotism, fly the national flag in all sorts of places and pledge to have national unity at all costs! And things eventually taper off until another 12 months.
Do we need to show our love for the country only once a year? Certainly not! It should be all year round, like what Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, or now fondly referred to as Abah or Dad, emphasised recently.
"All of us should willingly, and proudly, fly the Jalur Gemilang throughout the year, without having to wait for the National Month and Fly the Jalur Gemilang campaign… when everybody has this conscience, it means we have succeeded in embracing the country's independence." Pertinent words, indeed.
Amidst the current tough times of Covid-19, health screenings, contact tracing, job losses, reduced wages and poorer business, many Malaysians have been praised for embracing the Malaysia Prihatin spirit, and extending help and support in times of need, regardless of race, religion or political belief.
"This is a positive sign that proves the people are together during good and difficult times," says Muhyiddin as he attempts to inspire Malaysians to develop a tradition for a deeper sense of love for the country to engender unity and togetherness with greater regularity.
After all, Britain's war-time Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill did say that "A love for tradition has never weakened a nation, indeed it has strengthened nations in their hour of peril".
Sixty-three years after Malaya came into being on Aug 31, 1957 and 57 years after Malaysia was formed on Sept 16, 1963, we still have a major task to foster greater cohesiveness.
Why? Because there are still lingering doubts as to how much some Malaysians love their country, how much we are together as a nation or how much we trust each other.
Together we can overcome such niggling divisiveness. After all, the motto in our easily-recognisable coat of arms bearing the two prancing tigers is "Unity is Strength".
It's a common fallacy among some to think that only the Malays, Indians and Chinese count as Malaysians. We're certainly much more than that! Let's not forget the Bugis, Javanese, Sumatrans and Thais in our midst!
Even the Orang Asli in Peninsular Malaysia have different ethnicities comprising the Bateq, Cheq Wong, Jakun, Jahai, Jah Hut, Orang Kanaq, Kensiu, Mah Meri, Orang Kuala, Kintaq, Semai, Orang Seletar, Lanoh, Semaq Beri, Semelai, Mendriq, Temiar and Temuan.
Our brothers and sisters in Sabah include the Kadazan-Dusun, Murut, Lun Bawang/Lun Dayeh, Bajau, Murut and Suluk while the Iban, Bidayuh, Salako and Lara, Kayan, Kelabit, Kenyah, Penan, Sebop, Bisaya, Melanau, Tagal, Punan Bah and Kedayan feature strongly in Sarawak.
A motley crew we're certainly not but rather a potpourri of multiple strengths and talent that can make Malaysia even greater. With nationalistic fervour running at top gear at this time, let's extol the virtues of greater diversity, which go beyond just understanding multiple points of view. Differing perspectives often encourage people to look at challenges from different angles that often result in greater creativity and innovation.
Shaking off old biases is key to national unity if we want to progress as a competitive nation in the 21st century. In that vein, what Sabah current caretaker Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal said recently rang loud in my ears: "If you have a country based on so many races, diversity in religion, the important part is not only to build the economy but one of the top priorities is to unite the people first.
"You can't realise economic or human capital development if you don't have unity among the various races, in any nation."
Just like how Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Alhaj, our nation's founding father, advised us to stand united forever when he proclaimed independence: "Let no one think we have reached the end of the road: independence is indeed a milestone, but it is only the threshold to high endeavour."
The writer is a former chief executive officer and editor-in-chief of Bernama