by Joshua Chiang
A recent conversation among my friends and some new acquaintances was quite telling. I was explaining how the ‘indigenous’ people of Southeast Asia are genetically not too far apart. In fact, the early inhabitants who settled along the Mekong River were proto-Malays.
“So were they Muslims?” one of the acquaintances, a local Chinese, asked innocently.
“No, Islam came to this part of the world much later,” I replied.
“Wow,” the acquaintance remarked. “Luckily they weren’t Muslims.”
The Malay-Muslim friend among us immediately responded sternly, “What’s wrong with being a Muslim?”
There was a moment of silence. Then the Malay-Muslim broke into a smile. “I was just joking!”
The acquaintance was visibly relieved. “So you are not a Muslim?”
———————-
2010 has been a bumper year for Government mishaps and missteps. From the blunders of the Youth Olympic Games, to the handling of the flood in Orchard Road, to the fiasco over public transport, the Government’s response has been dismal.
But in my opinion, what constitutes the worst foul-up of 2010 must surely be the way the Government attempted to deflect responsibility for Mas Selamat’s escape by painting it as a racial-religious issue.
On 23 November, Singaporeans were greeted with the revelation that following his escape from Whitley Detention Centre, Mas Selamat received help from his immediate family. To the average Singaporean, the first question that comes to mind must surely be this: Why was the family not being monitored?
The public did not receive a satisfactory answer. What we got instead was a salvo of statements that said essentially the same thing: Don’t blame the Malay community.
Singapore’s Deputy Mufti Fatris Bakaram said the act of harbouring a known fugitive from the authorities is against Islamic principles. In a statement issued in response to media queries, Uztaz Fatris said this is a principle within the Islamic faith that must be upheld by every Muslim even though the fugitive is a family member or relative.
- “Habouring Fugitive un-Islamic: Deputy Mufti” (Channel Newsasia 23rd Nov 2010)
“It is an isolated case of one individual, of one family, doing something that is contrary to the interest of the rest of us. So all I hope is that we will not point a finger at the community, that we will take it in isolation and measure it on that basis.”
- President Nathan, “Don’t point finger at Malay-Muslim community over Mas Selamat case: President Nathan” (Channel Newsasia 24 Nov 2010)
“Given the fact that Mas Selamat did escape in a tudung, will the Ministry assure the Malay community that there won’t be unnecessary scrutiny on Malay women wearing tudung in security areas and when they seek appointments for jobs?”
- MP for Hong Kah GRC, Zaqy Mohamed “Hundreds probed after Mas Selamat escape” (Channel Newsasia 22 Nov 2010)
The same, tired narrative was replayed in a recent report in Channel Newsasia
Mr Yeo believes the general response of the Malay community showed they view Mas Selamat in the same way other communities do. He said: “Looking at it on a broader scale, all segments of the community have been very supportive of the anti-terrorist effort, and I think our confidence in that is well-founded.”
Singaporeans are not stupid. We all know that any right-minded person would view this case as an isolated incident of one family, “doing something that is contrary to the interest of the rest of us”.
Were they expected to do otherwise? Mas Selamat was after all, their immediate family, not some long-lost cousin.
In his article “Mas Selamat’s escape – It is about Govt incompetency, not race or religion”, TOC’s Andrew Loh raises similar questions. Why should the President, the Law Minister, and various other community leaders even mention the Malay-Muslim community? Are they implying that Singaporeans think it is somehow complicit in Mas Selamat’s escape, or that there is a potential of it being so?
Wielding the dangerous blame-thrower
The blamethrower: don't govern without it
Deflecting responsibility isn’t new. All governments do that. Some do it more often than others. In Singapore, our Government has turned it into an art form, albeit a rather crude one, like a really bad Michael Bay movie.
Nothing is spared from the blame-thrower – drain-choking leaves, citizens without spurs in their hides, even God.
But the latest round of blame-throwing takes the cake. Let’s blame the people who might blame the Malay community for the escape of Mas Selamat! Let’s just sidestep the issue of our own incompetence!
It might seem pretty harmless, taking on the role of the benevolent peacekeeper – “Hey, I know there’s a bad apple among the Malays, but let’s not blame all of them, ok?” – But it isn’t.
Now, imagine that you belong to a minority group in school. Each time someone in your group does something wrong, the teacher steps forward and tells the rest of the class the errant classmate’s action does not reflect on his group as a whole.
What happens when the individual action of a person is always mentioned in the same breath as the group to which he belongs? Over time, do people associate the bad behavior more to the individual or to the group?
The Government has always prided itself on being able to keep the peace between the various racial and religious communities in Singapore.
But racial and religious harmony is more than just a token group photo of the various races dressed in traditional ethnic clothing on Racial Harmony Day. It is more than just wielding a big fat stick at people who indulge in hate speech against people of other races and faiths.
Sure, we live in relative harmony here in Singapore. There are no racial clashes, no religious violence. But scratch the surface, and you’ll find that old stereotypes still exist. In fact, when TOC ran a series of stories on the homeless earlier this year, snide comments that the problems of poverty appeared to be confined to just one group of people (it was never obviously spelled out which) were not uncommon.
The government must ask itself whether it needs to rethink the way it views and handles issues relating to race and religion. It has to cease hiding behind the cover of stern but benign peacekeeper. It has to stop using the race card to further its own purpose. This is manipulative and threatens the very fabric of society it claims to protect.
If, as the government often claims, race and religion are fuses that can blow society apart if managed poorly, then the the Mas Selamat fiasco must surely be the worst foul-up of 2010. To me, it outranks even the overspending on the YOG, or the colossal losses from poor overseas investments. The impact might seem, on the surface, intangible. But the implications are real. It hurts the very foundation of a country – the unity of its people.
What do you think is the worst Government foul-up of 2010? Why? Do write in to us as theonlinecitizen@gmail.com
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The modus operandi of the PAP has always been the following:
1) Don’t apologise for any mistake no matter how severe
2) Blame ordinary S’poreans (akak Lesser Mortals)
There are too many mistakes to name but one of the real bad one is economic mismangement of GIC & TH (our CPF) funds
The PAP can never apologise.
Apologising means publicly admitting to their incompetence which would call for a massive pay-cut.
That must never happen!
PAP is consolidating power by dividing each individual race. Always playing the card of race riots. They stay in power with such a strategy.
Look at what our diplomats say about Malaysia, albeit having so many good things coming from Malaysia.
This status quo must be maintained and played along right to instill fear into people to make us all feel vulnerable.
The Mas Selamat fiasco has many more questions then answers.Was it a planned event or just an isolated incident?
I heard CNA has released a video on top 10 something for 2010.
Did it mention WikiLeaks about singapore leaders ?
Did it mention the MSK fiasco?
Did it mention Investment Boo boos?
Did it mention the FREAK FLOOD of 50 years?
Did it mention the impossibility to flood but yet flood?
Btw, where is Pinkie? How come so quiet for so long?
Lets deal with the root of the problem:
By voting the PM out, we will:
1. Solve the pblm of Temasek Holdings having a leader who throws away the citizen’s money
2. Nobody to shield incompetence in parliament (protect WKS during parliamentary query)
3. Ensuring a fairer parliament which is good for Singaporeans’ future ( no more fixing oppositions)
We can kill many birds with one stone by solving the root cause instead of the symptons. If the leader cannot ensure his subordinates deliver and be accountable, then HE is the problem.
By trying to deflect itself from the big boo boo its incompetent leaders created, PAP is the actual instigator of racial uneasiness and suspicion between the Malay and the rest of the Singaporean communities. Why bring out the racial card, other races never suspect the Malays, never at all. It is the Govt that is still harping on this 60s aspect
of the races.
Worst of all they try the same tactic on a neighbouring country, it is a form of inteference in other country’s politics,
yes, no?
Yes, the government has made lots of mistake and is not going to take any responsibilities. Yes, it will continue to divert all blame to others and to the people. Yes, there’s no transparency, responsibility or ownership. Yes, they are a bunch of grossly overpaid elites who are not worth their salary. Yes, they abuse their authority. Yes, everything and every institution is under their control.
But the power to rectify all this lies in our hands..Yes its called a “vote”
Let’s hope new year spells a new beginning. New, I mean it, no more old hands, old policies and old leaders. I mean old = lousy. Man in white is no longer white, we seen it, feel it and hear about it. Nothing new, lets unite and stand together in the coming election. The worse in 2010. 2009, 2008 and before is to have 1/3 of population invaded by foreigners and we have our NS men questioned our leader the purpose of defending this…country, city, nation? Singaporeans don’t even know what they are protecting anymore. This is getting sick and beyond repair and only the citizen votes can make things right again.
Thanks for quoting that question from Zaqy Mohd again. To me, that has got to be the most brainless, childish, naive, stupid & irrelevant question of all time. It just serves to remove all doubt, or whatever little that is left, of the competency and intellect, of such MPs. Zaqy has to be reeling from the effects after that utterance. He has to be regretting how in the world could he, a PAP MP, have asked that question? Absolutely BRAINLESS QUESTION!!!
Ever since they allow Sands to build casino in Marina Bay, so many inauspicious things have happened here. Singapore has been played out by the Sands Boss, sucking money off our small city state, with the three joss-stick shaped buildings, and worse of all a Chinese shaped coffin topping the complex. Who dare say Sands know no fengshui priciples. He is more than an expert in this ancient Chinese Art.
Every day three joss-sticks are offered as prayers to our island state, such prayers are only offered to God or to the dead, and we Singaporeans are humans, not God. Such an inauspicious icon.
Corrections. “and we Singaporeans are humans, not God, and not yet the dead. Such an inauspicious icon”.
I disagree slightly with the article title though I enjoy very much reading it.
This Big Fiasco, imho, is the Biggest security Boo Boo of the entire history of spore since sanila utama.
Yes, I feel dam ashamed as a citizen.
In fact, that is an understatement.
mas selamat’s incident and the govt’s responses especialy from the minister-in-charge only goes to show the LACK OF ACCOUNTABILITY among our ELITES here.
in itself,it is still acceptable – though it should not be condoned – as mistakes and loopholes sometimes do occur.
the real issue is that no one at the top seems to be honest and humble enough to offfer sincere apology and make amends.
it is the same of the cruel and heartless FT POLICY that impoverishes countless of singaporean workers and their families that have led some to suicides,others to break up in divorces out of financial problesms and causing ,in large part, the recent TEENAGE GANGSTERISM in some way.
all our ministers,including the very ones who are supposedly ‘champions’ of workers merely tag along and even ask workers to be ‘cheaper yet’ in order to comepete with the hordes of FTs etc the govt keeps bringing in.
yes.mas selamat’s indeed a fiasco but the greater fiasco is that of betraying our very own loyal ‘SUBJECTS’ – OUR native workers – who are of the highest integrity and producitivity.
PS: HAS THE GOVT ELABORATE ON WHY WE NEED AN ‘extra’ PRODUCTIVITY DRIVE when we were highly sought-after high productivity workers on international surveys once???
No, I disagree that the Mas Selamat fiasco was the worst boo-boo in 2010. Because it isn’t a boo-boo. It was a deliberate, pathetic and shameful attempt by the government to cover up their mistakes. A boo-boo is an error. This wasn’t an error. This was a deliberate decision by the government.
Is it fair to say that the PAP is the best performing gonmin in the world ?
I mean we have never seen them having to publicly admit failure in any of their policies right? or is there one which i dun know?
May be there is but i dun know as I seldom read newspapers. i am ignorant you see.
Any one can enlightenment me?
If Mas Selamat is guilty of a crime, he should be charged in court and the public should have a chance to scrutinize his case. He was never charged. That is why some quarters sympathize with him and even cheer on his prowess at evading the authorities.
If Park Chung Hee is consider the best PM in South Korea history, he is not angle either. What do you expect of the PAP?
Do you believe you have found a leader in the opposition that will match Park Chung Hee? Don’t ever believe politics is that simple.
if the pap government believed the minority Malays were @ fault..
what the hell is leekingyou thinkin when he united 1 giant GRC tagged team comprised of malay/indians(injuns ministers@large) for fart?
did leekingyou makes a grave judgement error or just usin GRC malays ministers as satay seller? remembered the incident when our royal highness the prince went to the melaka straits for a satay meals?
he ordered 40 sticks..the melaka satayman just give him 25 sticks onLEE
till today hav he yet to LEARN?
I agree with some comments herein – if Singapore was really a corporate like Singapore Inc., the CEO would be replaced already. They want to peg their salary against the corporate sector, then the accountability should AT LEAST be the same, if not more stringent.
Anyway, I agree this must be the mother of all cock-ups for Singapore, the hallmark of something/someone that can happen only in the civil services or SAF. Actually, it is hilarious, like ‘fact is stranger than fiction’. We must be the laughing stock in security circles by now. WKS really ganna sai for this one. So much for meritocracy.
actually, the govt is covertly trying to implant in our minds that in the near future, when the time comes, we should not hesitate to rat on our neighbors and families. ahh, the subtle indoctrination of our dear old leader..
angry_one 31 December 2010
If Mas Selamat is guilty of a crime, he should be charged in court and the public should have a chance to scrutinize his case. He was never charged. That is why some quarters sympathize with him and even cheer on his prowess at evading the authorities.
I agree with angry_one. If the Government has all the details and evidence of their plot, they should have no hesitation to prosecute them and give a hefty sentence to the guilty. Yet they prefered to let them rot in indefinite detention and denying them the freedom to defend themselves from the accusations. What Singaporeans know of JI are from the Government’s white paper and MSM press release. Are they guilty? Or the term innocent before proven guilty is passe? All the bullshit about national security is hogwash. MSK still manage to escape a high level security detention centre manned by Gurkha mercenaries. I don’t think a court trial and subsequent punishment would cause public uproar. We as Singaporeans have the right to know of what threats we are facing and the outcome of the investigation. Or any Tom, Dick and Ahmad can be thrown into jail without any chance of proving himself/herself innocent.