Truth matters in all areas of life

The Sun had a story headlined \”Knowledge element\” with the word ‘knowledge\’ actually coloured in blue. The sub-headline on page 5 of their July 1 issue states: \”Landlord unaware of tenant\’s illegal activity will not be held liable.\”

The Star also had two columnists on the same day arguing that \”ragging should be banned\” and that \”bullying has serious and deep emotional consequences\”, both in reference to the recent death of a RMC student.

I have a friend who is currently trying to fight for his rights against the onslaught of a corrupted regime – a local authority/developer connivance.

All these cases need knowledge and not ignorance to resolve issues.

Allow me to therefore reflect on the root word, ‘gnosis\’ and all related issues and concerns of the three cases. A definition found on the internet of this word is; ‘knowledge of spiritual matters; mystical knowledge.\’

Now, is it not strange that this same word is also often translated into English as knowledge? Is knowledge, whether coloured in blue or stated in simple black-and-white, more than just a one-dimensional awareness of selective information wherein we assume to know what it means?

I am not entirely sure, but this column remains my selective rhetorical argument which I want to raise with all authorities involved in danger of legal liability for their actions and non-actions.

In one case, it appears to be a pre-emptive action by landlords who do not want to held accountable for copyright infringements by their so-called tenants.

In the other case, it is fire-fighting in the usual \” hangat-hangat tahi ayam Malaysian-style;\” after the RMC student had already died from ragging.

Leaving idiocrats to define regulations

I am most concerned with the potential implications of legal liability and the ‘lack of knowledge\’ or ‘not being informed\’. The real and imminent danger is that the government of Malaysia is going to lose many more cases of legal liability if we allow idiocrats to define these relationships on our behalf.

‘Idiocrats\’ are bureaucrats who are legally authorised persons to define regulations and bylaws but who, unfortunately, do not use their God-given brains for thinking about what they say, do or not do.

In short, they do not think through the what and the how of what they do, and all its potential consequences intended and unintended.

Who then qualify as these \”idiocrats?\”

Forgive me for I am going to be very blunt about this. Recently Minister in the Prime Minister\’s Department Nazri Aziz ( right ) has proven to all and sundry that he qualifies. Why? As a minister of the government and a lawyer, he knows the laws! But he spoke in Parliament about the relocation of Parliament without forethought and fore-knowledge!

In fact, with his answer he could have been accused of misleading the people of Malaysia; i.e. those who put him there! But, why do I say that he is not merely a bureaucrat but also an idiocrat?

A bureaucrat has an oversight role with responsibilities and accountabilities but chooses to hide behind them when he or she does not want or have the political will to solve a problem.

That is a self-preservation instinct. But an idiocrat goes even further because he or she also moves into areas of jurisdiction that are not theirs; apparently without knowledge of their subject matter. Or they behave like an ignoramus who does not know and does not know that he does not know!

Another death

Am I truly disturbed and bothered? Yes, I am. After another death at RMC, again we can claim or assume zero responsibility. Instead, irresponsibility is assigned to a scapegoat!

To me, the defence minister should have resigned, if he has any honour! But alas we only have a few people of honour! For now, it will be a miserable colonel who takes the ‘blame!\’

In fact, just as it should have been in the Sime Darby case, the entire Board of Ignorants (see my last column) should resign. And to my mind that should also include the former Mindef secretary-general who was the chairman of the board of governors.

I think the parent teacher association of the RMC plus the RMC Old Boys Association must sue the Defence Ministry and the board for \”ignorance on taking no action on matters well within their jurisdiction and authority.\”

There is no excuse for the board to claim it was \”unaware about the ragging\”, because I am informed that another student died some years ago!

Therefore, are we really that ignorant and suffering from ignositis? What then is ignositis? It is the ego-defined temptation to speak with authority on subjects we know very little about.

Although Minister Nazri admitted his error, the real way to be sorry is to resign; that is the only way of integrity! This had already been done by Zaid Ibrahim and Chew Mei Fun ( right ). There is no other way to preserve one\’s integrity other than to stand by what one has said even when it hurts!

Ignoramus-filled nation

1Malaysia is proving to be a very funny but an ignoramus-filled nation. We say rhetorically that we are Islamic but approve betting licenses. Does anyone really know what an Islamic state is, in terms of the real and here-and-now world?

Ask the scholars in constitutional law and they will tell you we can never be an Islamic polity until more than 66 percent vote to make us an Islamic nation by amending the constitution. Pakistan did this; and paid the full price.

We can laugh and joke about everything and everyone, except we cannot laugh about ‘1Funny Malaysia\’; which is our inability to laugh at ourselves really!

Why are we so paranoid about political cartoons that we have now banned this cartoon book! Are we not therefore cartoons, as the world now laughs at us? Yes, we have become a joke to the rest of the world!

What then is the knowledge the board did not know about the difference between ragging and bullying? Are they not a set of ignoramuses if the board of governors did not \”know that abusive ragging was even happening in the college?\”

Is it because the commandant and other officers did not tell the truth? Does it really take much to know what is actually happening in any organisation; if someone is interested in the truth!

What is knowledge if owners or leaders do not bother to undertake to know about the occupants and actions under their jurisdictions? How can owners not know that illegal activities are taking place in buildings owned by them and how should they become more responsible for law enforcement, or better still crime prevention activities?

To me, truth matters in all areas of life. There are some simple truths about life in Malaysia. Malaysians are not used to speaking up for truth. We have a preordinate need to be compliant rather than speak truth. Moreover, every other issue is considered ‘sensitive\’.

Even government officers do not speak for the truth; often preferring to defer to elders when they know the facts and information.

Maybe, as law lecturer Azmi Sharom has written, there is a subservient mindset that equates \”seeming differences of opinions about truth which are viewed as disloyalty to the government of the day even if it denies the public interest.\”

Thus public servants need to learn to analyse truth and separate truth from falsity and always serve the public interest.