Everyone is entitled to nationality. Everyone is entitled to belong to a country, to be a member of a nation. It is called Citizenship and peek into your passport or onto your IC and you will see that we are all Malaysians. Yet why does reality defer from what is written in law?

All citizens of Malaysia have equal opportunity to succeed in this nation. We all should have the same opportunities to earn a living, to gain an education and to practice our beliefs systems. We all are Malaysians regardless of our background or where we came from because that's what our passports or IC say so. Last I check I was very much Malaysian regardless of the fact I live on in East Malaysia. Thus, it irks me when I read news reports (MSM and Independent) that seem to segregate Malaysians base on race.

"Malay, Bumiputras, Chinese and Indians". Isn't that a common sentence we see in news reports? I am a bumiputra yet not Malay. Does that make me less Malaysian then the Malays? My wife is Chinese and her relatives (cousins) are Indians. On my mother's side we have Malay relatives (via marriage) and all of us get along fine. Do we segregate ourselves when we meet up? Aside from religious practices, we all sit together and chat away like nobodies business because we're family. And family ties cut across race and religion. We're all Malaysian who are bound by ties stronger than race or religion. We're bound by blood and blood ties run deep.

So why do we have so much talk about race and religion yet emphasizing the need for Bangsa Malaysia? In order for Bangsa Malaysia to be a reality, then any talk along the line of race and religion needs to be totally stop both by the politicians and also the press. There should not be any policies that seek to uplift a particular race or religion instead policies should be broad reaching, sheltering all Malaysians regardless of creed or religion.

Talk about being unable to compete should be abolished. After 50 years, all Malaysians should be able to compete on equal footing or else until when must help be given in order for one's race or religion to be up to par.

Abolish all mention of race and religion in our official documents. It is silly to fill in a form that asks for your race and religion. Why? What significance would that information be when filling in a bank form? Would my race and religion determined whether I get the bank loan or be able to borrow a book at the local library?

Abolish all quota systems. Why offer quotas to the majority group? Why not offer quota to the minority group because they are the ones who need it the most. Quota systems help out the minority groups not the majority yet in Malaysia the reverse is practiced.

Evict politicians who are career politicians. They have no qualms about enriching themselves. Politicians work for the people and not the other way round. They serve us because we put them into office. We were the ones who entrusted them with the responsibility to look after us.

Give Malaysians the opportunity to make a living in this fair country and you will see Malaysia prosper. Allow all Malaysians the freedom to express themselves and to practice their beliefs. Teach respect for one another rather than a doctrine of superiority and you will see a society that is mature and capable of living with one another. Enough of talking about tolerance but instead teach understanding and accepting ones differences. Then truly, Malaysia would be truly Malaysian.