Since the stepping down of our beloved Dr Mahathir Mohamad, it has been very interesting to read the never-ending praises and glorifying statements boldly made by politicians, scholars, government servants and the public.

I think we have come to a point where many are so engrossed in praising Dr M that we have forgotten the challenges that lie ahead for Pak Lah.

As a Malaysian, I am grateful for the 'improvements' that Dr M has brought to the country in his 22 years in power, but hey, lets not also forget the mess he has made during this time. The open praises to Dr M also gives us an indication about the level of maturity of the current generation.

Many ideas that have been thrown about, such as a center for the study of Dr M's mind, to change the name of the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (by right this should have been Sepang International Airport), and other ridiculous ideas clearly indicates that this generation is unable to think beyond the Dr M era.

One example of this immature generation can be seen in the letter by Nik Hassan Nik Mohd Amin. He claims that the new government should not 're-invent the wheel', so to speak, that has been successfully polished by Dr M.

I find that when people are so comfortable with what they have, they cling on to it so tightly that they refuse to take into account the changes happening around them. If you have read the book 'Who moved my cheese', you will get a very simple idea on why adapting to change is of utmost importance to our nation.

Reading the bulleted points of 'Dr Mahathir's strategic posture and perspectives' listed by Nik Hassan in his letter, I would like to give my views on what I think he actually meant to say. My points are listed in the same order as Nik Hassan's:

-Continue to provide assistance to government cronies by giving them more projects so that they can lessen the 'economic disparity' that has fallen upon them since independence. Not to forget also come up with bigger projects than what Dr M has wasted the nation's money on.

  • Maintain the Internal Security Act and sharpen it further as a 'weapon' for the government.
  • Promote free market by embracing the Asean Free Trade Agreement, but come up with something else to protect companies like Proton so that they don't get eaten alive by international competition.
  • Hire more policeman is order to curb "incidents of crime, broken homes, and abandonment of babies and old folks". Not sure how this will help the public, but I am sure that more police means more bribes will need to be forked out by the public. Also the current police force should make themselves busy assisting politicians rather then protecting and serving the public.
  • Take our fate and destiny into our own hands by blaming the Jews for the economic and social disparity of the world. Instead of strengthening our own economic foundations, shout back at any foreign country that provides constructive criticism. If any Malaysian speaks out, use the ISA to shut him/her up. This is especially important when it comes to instances where people talk about corruption among high-level government officials and politicians.

    Maintain the US dollar peg as we are very comfortable with it and we are 'competitive' nationally.
  • Build more Multimedia Super Corridor type places so that we can 'improve' our 'niche'. Probably Nik Hassan is better at listing the things that have been 100 percent developed by Malaysians in the areas he mentioned. Ignore the fact that MSC is a failure, especially with regards to the amount of investment poured into it.
  • Widen the existing gap between bumiputra and non-bumiputra quota in every aspect of education, business and government contracts. Ignore the fact that Dr Mahathir's 'bumiputra' policies have failed the majority of bumiputras by making them less competitive and reliant on the government for help. I make this comment not as an insult to bumiputras, but to repeat what many Umno politicians have said in the last year or so - that the bumiputras still need government assistance after four decades of independence.

What we need is a clean-up activity by current Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to show his commitment to the people. Pak Lah should also not continue his praises for his predecessor but be bold enough to point out the mistakes that were made in the first place and undo them to the best of his ability.

He should move away from the image of being Dr M's prodigy and show the world that he is his own man. This might not happen overnight but I sure hope that it will.

Let us not forget that the current young generation has had enough of Dr M's dictatorial methods. If things do not change, as a nation, we are heading for disaster. For people like Nik Hassan, it is time you woke up and realise that change is inevitable. Face it or lose it mate!