NATIONS, like people, grow awkwardly but that is still growth. Some days it is obvious: a new MRT line, a policy that finally makes sense or a younger leader speaking with quiet wisdom. Other days, it is clumsy and contradictory.
We move forward, then stumble back. We say all the right words, then forget how to listen. We rise in unity or in protest but rise all the same. And maybe that is the point: nationhood is not a product; it is a process.
I have lived long enough to see the contradictions – progress that feels delayed, unity that feels fragile and decisions that inspire one week and confuse the next. Yet, I have also seen what remains steady: our spirit to rebuild, reimagine and try again – over and over.
This Merdeka season, I have been thinking less about what Malaysia is and more about what we are still becoming.
We have never been a finished story – not in 1957, not in 1963 and not now. If you read the newly unveiled 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP), you will sense that too. It does not claim perfection or pretend we have arrived. Instead, it offers a vision rooted in fairness, sustainability and shared dignity.
At its core, the 13MP is about reshaping development, not just what we build but why and for whom. It speaks of raising the floor of our society, of ensuring no one is left behind as we chase digital dreams and AI ambitions.
It weaves high-tech growth with age-old values – justice, trust and belonging. It is not flashy patriotism; it is practical hope.
If you read between the lines, there is a quiet truth: the government can lay out the roadmap but the work is still ours. Policy means nothing if the people are not walking with it.
You want a better Malaysia? Then show up, plant something, mentor someone, speak kindly when it is easier to mock and be part of the solution, not the problem.
Progress is not found only in five-year plans or policy documents; it is found in everyday choices: the way you run your business, the way you raise your children and the way you treat strangers – not just the ones who look like you.
We say we want a fairer country, then we must be fairer in our homes and dealings. We say we want unity, then we must build friendships beyond our comfort zone. We say we want peace, then we must stop feeding the small fires of fear and suspicion – online and offline.
The 13MP reminds us that national growth means everyone matters, not just the top earners or the urban elite. It acknowledges our diversity not as a hurdle but as a strength. It speaks of green economies, creative industries and digital ambition but always with the human being at the centre. That is the Malaysia I want: where development is not just tall buildings but strong communities, where governance is not just efficient but also ethical and where freedom is not just personal but also shared.
We are a country made of many parts – Semenanjung, Sabah and Sarawak. Malay, Chinese, Indian, Orang Asli, Iban, Kadazan and all those in between. Our geography reflects our complexity. Our stories overlap, tangle and stretch across sea and memory. But if there is one thing that keeps us together, it is the belief that we are not done yet.
There is still work to be done. Floods will come, prices will rise and trust will crack. But what gives me hope is that even when the news disappoints us, Malaysians rarely give up on each other. We still
pack food for strangers (remember #KitaJagaKita during the pandemic?); we still queue to vote, even if it is held in the middle of the week; and we still stand up whenever Negaraku is played – even on television for a sports event thousands of kilometres away. It may not make the headlines but that is the country I see.
This Hari Malaysia, let us celebrate not just where we came from but where we are willing to go. Let us honour the awkward steps, forgive the fumbles and keep choosing to build, together. Because we are not a perfect country but
we are a possible one. And that possibility, that willingness to become something better, is worth showing up for. Always.
Dr Nahrizul Adib Kadri is a professor of biomedical engineering at the Faculty of Engineering, and the principal of Ibnu Sina Residential College, Universiti Malaya. Comments: letters@thesundaily.com
