Merdeka! Malaysia!

Merdeka day is just about two months away. There will be a lot of coaxings, persuasions, earnest requests, and pleadings to the extent of almost begging, by various leaders around the nation, to the citizens of the nation to fly the national flag - on their vehicles, at their business premises, houses, factories and firms. 

Subsequently, at times, small flags for the vehicles will be distributed free. Dignified personalities will even go to the extent of attaching the flags on to the screens on the vehicles, their enthusiastic show of patriotism captured by the cameras and videos of the media. 

 How sad! This is what is happening in Malaysia. People got to be persuaded, in various ways, to fly the flag. In fact, it should be the people who should be eager to display the flag, without the asking. And they are not doing that. Why? It is not that they don’t have a flag or the means to buy one. The reason is simple - DISSATISFACTION. Dissatisfaction with the state of things in the nation; dissatisfaction with the rise in the price of commodities, dissatisfaction with the loss of their livelihood or income due to the huge presence of foreign workers, dissatisfaction with the crimes being committed almost routinely, dissatisfaction with the politicians for not fulfilling their bright promises, dissatisfaction with the exceedingly authoritarian stance taken by some personnel in power. 

Yes, it all draws up to dissatisfaction. Hopefully, this time around the people will set aside their feeling of dissatisfaction for a while, and fly the national flag, if not for showing their patriotism to the nation, at least to show a good example to the children and youths, that patriotism to the nation can’t be haggled with any other feelings of the mind. 

Well, sometimes it doesn’t make sense, but that’s the way it is, in our beloved nation of Malaysia. Hope to see more flags flying this time around. Start now! Merdeka!