In the days when I still had a dream...for this country

In 2001, it was younger and had a dream. A dream that this country will be different in the years ahead and there would be someone at the helm of the government who cared enough to listen. On 30 July 2001, the then Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi gave a media statement on the need to deal with youth delinquency. I responded with a letter. Here are the excerpts from the letter.


On schools & education:
.....School is no longer fun. Could that be the reason the number of crimes committed in school and the number of drop-outs each year? Instead of embarking on a journey of exploration, school children of today are being put through vigorous and streanous routine of monotonous lecturing, long list of homework, commuting from one tuition class to another and having to memorise the loads of information dumped on them....no wonder they find no joy in learning, as they don't have time to learn.

.....In a modern and civilised society, acts of suppression will only bring about greater retaliation.

.....the way children are taught in schools need to change - the syllabus, the method.

On the economy, society and culture:
.....we have to build charater and personality of our youth.

.....the strentgh of a people and the resilience of its economy depends on the quality/calibre of their younger ones - as they could make or break everything we build today.

.....the fabric of our society is stitched in a way that is hardly comprehensible to the younger generation be it at work or in the society. They seek their rightful place in this materialistic society but their path is blocked by walls of custom, tradition, seniority and "filters".

.....teenagers are energetic and annoyingly inquisitive thus trying to suppress them with rules and punishment is like pouring oil onto burning fire.

.....the younger generation wants to be heard but who can they talk to? They are the stakeholders of the country's future but their views are not taken into account when the government sets policies.

......the Prime Minister has a non-Malay advisor.....the government should encourage other senior officials to appoint an advisor below the age of 35 years to help close the age-linked communication gap between those who make the law/policies/sets the course of the nation and those that will be affected most by it.

On law enforcement:
.....law should be enforced through education and creating awareness. Punishment is the result of intentionally breaking the law despite knowledge of the consequences. But what I've seen is more of intimidation that anything else.


The letter was 9 pages long and yes, the DPM replied. Those were the days. I had hopes then. Now, I'm just different or just hope I still have a dream.