Monday, May 29, 2017

What Price National Pride?

All nations have their national pride, based on a core of basic attributes that differentiate them from other nations. They include cultural and ethnical heritage, historical affiliations and socio-economic characteristics. Cultural traits such as the Protestant ethics and Frontiier spirit for the Europens and Americans,the "Mandarin cult "for the Chinese. the Samurai ethics" for the Japanese etc. help to establish the national identity. So do historical landmarks such as the Big Ben, the Washington Monument, the Eifel Tower, the Leaning Tower of Piza, the Pyramids, the Taj Mahal etc.

The developing countries such as Malaysia also have their own identity and pride. While some old socio-cultural traits have been displaced by what is often termed as "modernisation', new ones have also emerged. Thus the old identity based on the Songket (Malaysian brocade), the Zapin (a traditional dance), and the Kris, the Batik, the Keroncong etc. which are shared with the Indonesians, have been augmented by new socio-economic icons such as FELDA ( the Federal Land Development Authority which had opened up huge land development schemes) Patronas (the National petroleum Industry), Proton ( the national Automopbile Industry), MARA ( Council of Trust for National Development) etc. All these help to establish the new Malaysiaan identity and national pride.
FGV is now in the open market

Patronas, Proton and Felda (FGV-Federal Golden Venture) are three national development and modernisation authorities which had catapulted Malaysia into the modern era of economic growth , together of course with other socio-economic development endeavours.They are three of the top entities which contribute to the national pride, which Malaysians can call their own. But Felda (FGV) and Proton had now been opened to the share market and almost half of their shares sold to non-Malaysian. Isn't it not like selling part of the national pride in the interest of promoting the nation's economic and business interest? Will Proton cars in the future carry a different emblem and carry different non-Malaysian names?
will the Twin Towerd be sold?

Will Patronas and other national enterprises which have achieved a marketable status in the world market be also put out for sale in the future if the authority managing them finds it difficult to survive on local capital and support?
Proton is no longer 100% Malaysian

I wonder what will remain as the basis of a national pride if Malaysia continues to place its national assets on the share market of the world, open to all with money to buy. Especially when cash is considered as the most important thing in the world and national pride can be put on sale for cash returns? Perhaps it's time for Malaysia to think of building up and strengthening its national identity and pride further by maintaining companies that are owned by the Malaysians themselves, even if the growth has to be slowed down a little. What is progress and prosperity if we have to sell our pride and national identity?

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