KLCC

This year is the year of double celebrations for Malaysia with the 50th Independence anniversary and the visit Malaysia year 2007. More tourists means more foreign exchange while it also means more exposure to the specters and sensibilities that a global world offers. Yet Mahathirism is still pretty much obvious in Malaysia 4 years after his resignation as Prime Minister.

Globalization will ensure that Malaysia will definitely face the need to be at par with its neighbors and the rest of the world in ensuring a host of 'rights' and 'freedoms', things that are currently under a protective bowl.

For the foreign visitors, Malaysia glows in state of the art facilities with a world class airport and superb smiles from the hostesses, police officers and the immigration counters.

Once out of the airport, it is a different picture that emerges and at times it is a disturbing one. It is a picture that shows the deep gab in the country's readiness to leap forward and the strong pull to remain in the past of 'Mahathirism'.

The 22 years rule of former Prime Minister Mohamad Mahathir can still be seen in the infrastructural landscape that litters the state of Selangor. It is also very obvious to the foreign visitors in the structures that fills the former wasteland where Putra jaya and Cyber Jaya are now built.

In Kuala Lumpur the eyes are drawn towards the super structures of the Kuala Lumpur City Center (KLCC) and its posh shopping complex the Suria Shopping Center. There is also the numerous modern buildings and the obvious sign of modernity with the trains and monorails completing the scene.

To the foreign mind, the country seems ready to rumble in the small group in the big league that forms the industrialized nations of the world. The Western world is indeed several steps ahead of the Muslim world in infrastructural development as well as in state of the art facilities. They are leagues apart in traffic control, rules and regulations that allows the much needed 'freedom' and respects the 'rights' that are so damn lacking in the Muslims world and in Malaysia altogether.

The foreign eyes does not see the difference between Europe or the US and Australia, Canada or New Zealand when compared to Malaysia's rapid industrial and building construction growth. All these were achieved during the time of Tun Mahathir and little has changed since then in terms of infrastructural development. The foundations laid by Mahathir can still be seen and they have even become the icons of modernity in a Malaysia that has transformed itself from a tin exporter to complex financial marketplace.

Yet while cruising along on the many highways in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur or near Putra Jaya and Cyber Jaya, the foreign visitors have one question in mind: Why the low profile celebrations for the 50th anniversary of the country's independence?

There is little to show that the country is really embracing the 50th anniversary with fiesta or with the patriotic fevers that one can see across Indonesia for example. The same visitors eye across Riau, the richest province in Indonesia with its various states and mini states, offered a different display of patriotism.

A few nicely done billboards - some other eyes would say the billboards were a waste though - and some flags on the official buildings did not convince the visitors in the month of August that the country was fervently celebrating 'merdeka'.

Indeed Riau was also celebrating its 50th anniversary of accession to Indonesia, which is celebrating its 61st Independence anniversary on the same day. One aspect of the celebrations across Riau were the community assemblies and the joy displayed by the 'warga Riau' in taking on the celebrations of the country's independence anniversary.

In Indonesia, the people does not wait for the government to pitch a flag (with its strings and poles) in front of their homes. In cities, towns and even remote villages, the people will unite on the day of independence and will raise the flag as a form of respect, joy and re-confirmation of their faith in the nations status as an independent state.

Indeed, Malaysia has the mid-night fire crackers that cost millions and are not affordable in other countries and indeed, like any other nations; the Malaysian will either go to the Merdeka square or watch the national celebrations on television. Yet the fever of 'Merdeka' was not there and this could mean that the people is turning a page on such celebrations altogether.

Whether this means the population is less patriotic or nationalistic is to be determined by experts in the field but one thing is certain: Malaysia did not really show that it was celebrating a landmark 50 years of 'Merdeka'. The grip was not there to the extent that the Parliamentarians were scuffling and shouting over the lack of patriotic and nationalistic display by the people.

One foreign visitor - who imports his products from Malaysia - had a first hand experience of the spirit of 'merdeka' in Malaysia and it was not a good one. It is the attitude of car drivers and motorcyclists that annoyed the visitor who was shell shocked to notice that Malaysian drivers were one of a kind.

"Their hearts and minds are not free despite the fact that this country is 50 years into its independence," he commented, after the many close encounters with 'rogue' drivers along Jalan Ampang, Jalan Sultan Ismail and near the Damansara area.

An Indian man driving a Proton Perdana had the vexing attitude of not allowing the car carrying the foreign visitor to take the left lane that leads to the entrance to the car park of Suria KLCC along Jalan Ampang. The persistence with which the Indian driver prevented the visitors car from taking the left lane was embarrassing. The Indian driver would not allow any one to overtake him or cut in front of him though this was perfectly legitimate and legal.

The visitor was altogether surprised to see that Malaysian drivers always speeds up their vehicles when they see another vehicle cutting in front of them - though there are lots of space between the two vehicles.

The other shocking part was when the local drivers would slow down to allow cars coming from another intersection into a highway while at times the traffic signs indicates 'gave way to traffic from left'.

The attitudes of Malaysian drivers became the indicator of the attitude of the Malaysians in real life. The smiles at the air port turned into rogue attitudes and angry faces of the Malaysian population in the streets.

This too is the doing of the era of the father of development and what the visiting eyes can witness in the characterization of the Malaysians in the streets and in some shopping complexes (where some sellers would not entertain a certain race of foreign origin thinking they do not have the buying power).

Mahathirism has done good to Malaysia in terms of structures and state of the art facilities and buildings or roads - though many of the roads needs upgrading - but it has also created little 'napoleons' and little monsters. Psychologists would say - after interviewing them - that the era of Mahathir has damaged the moral of the nation due to the rapid pace of changes from the humble 'kampung' nation to that of a modern one on its way to the status of an industrialized state.