Divine discipline and rebuke is given in love and must neither be despised nor rejected. This should also be true for those who give or receive human discipline and rebuke.

“The world must learn that I love the Father, and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me.” (John 14:31)

This lesson is UNIVERSAL, SHORT, SIMPLE AND PROFOUND.

a. UNIVERSAL

It is intended that it should be learnt by the whole world.

b. SHORT

‘That I….me’ – only sixteen words!

c. SIMPLE

Easy to understand – Jesus loves the Father and obeys everything the Father commands him to do.

d. PROFOUND

1. For Jesus Christ

Loving and obeying his Father meant ‘loving us and giving himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.’ (Ephesians 5:2). Jesus ‘died for our sins according to the Scriptures…he was raised the third day according to the Scriptures.’ (See 1 Corinthians 15: 3-8)

2. For Us

We have to learn to ‘be imitators of God therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.’ (Ephesians 5: 1-2)

All through our earthly lives, we must wear this “L” plate on both our front and back in order to remind ourselves of the important lesson which the world must LEARN

To withhold the use of the Bahasa Malaysia Bibles is an infringement of Article 11 of the Federal Constitution which gives every Malaysian the right to profess his/ her faith as well as to practice it.

This constitutional right is rendered illusory if Christians in Malaysia are denied access to Bibles in a language with which they are familiar.

This action of withholding the Bahasa Malaysia Bibles deprives Christians in Sabah, Sarawak , and in Semenanjung, a large majority of whom use Bahasa Malaysia, the right to use the Holy Scriptures in Bahasa Malaysia, to practice and profess their faith and, to nourish themselves spiritually.

It is baseless to withhold the Bibles in Bahasa Malaysia on the ground that they are “prejudicial to public order”. Bibles in Bahasa Malaysia have been used since before the independence of our country and has never been the cause of any public disorder.

Since the 1970s and in consonance with the government’s policies in education and the national language, Christians in Malaysia have received their education in Bahasa Malaysia. To deny the same Christians in Malaysia the right to read and study the Bible in Bahasa Malaysia is thus ridiculous and offensive. In fact, it is this action by the authorities themselves which is an affront to good public order.

We call on the relevant government officials who have neither the authority nor the right to act in this unconscionable manner to explain their action to the church leaders and to the public.

Church leaders and the Executive Committee of the CFM in “An Affirmation to the Churches in Malaysia” (6-8 Sept 1989, the Kuching consultation) and then later in “A Declaration to Churches in Malaysia” (30 January 2008) have stood on their commitment to Bahasa Malaysia as our national language and have used and continue to use Bahasa Malaysia in the life and witness of our Churches and Christian organizations.

The government and CFM have exchanged letters on this matter previously and we have a written agreement in December 2005 that Bahasa Malaysia Bibles can be distributed so long as the symbol of the cross and the words “A Christian publication” are printed on the front page.

We call on the government to walk the talk of its 1Malaysia policy and vision and not to curtail or impose conditions on the freedom of citizens to worship, pray and read the Holy Scriptures in Bahasa Malaysia. How can the first pillar of the Rukunegara i.e. Belief In God, be made a living reality in the lives of Malaysians if the government imposes restrictions and conditions on the constitutional and fundamental right of citizens to freedom of religion?

We ask that the relevant authorities resolve this matter promptly and release these Bibles for the use of Christians without any further delay or excuse.

Bishop Ng Moon Hing
Chairman and the Executive Committee
The Christian Federation of Malaysia
4 November 2009

The National Budget is a Moral Document

The government’s national budget is always a sort of self-revelation: the unveiling of the government’s vision for the people and a diagnosis of the current socio-economic state of the country. It is not merely an economic blueprint or worse, a political showcase. On a more succinct level, the national budget deals with the livelihood of the people, the men and women on the street. Therefore, it cannot be a neutral or amoral document.

How the federal funds are spent (on whom, in what, and with whom) hinges only on one aspect of the budget while the rest has to do with the acquirement of these funds (from who and from where). These purviews are necessarily grounded on the underlying moral decision already assumed in the budget. Therefore the Malaysia 2010 Budget has much more to tell us about the moral vision the current government has for the society than just their proposed spending and earning in the next few years.

The quintessential element of a national budget is the equitable distribution of the national wealth. While the market economy allows for private profits, the Government has a moral duty to care for its poorest citizen and those marginalized in the market economy and isolated from its capital and gains. Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak seemed to agree with this as he opened his 2010 Budget speech with a quote from the Qur’an, Sural Zukhruf, verse 32:

Is it they who would portion out the Mercy of your Lord? Is it We Who portion out between them their livelihood in this world, and We raised some of them above others in ranks, so that some may employ others in their work. But the mercy (Paradise) of your Lord (O Muhammad) is better than the (wealth of this world) which they amass

The Bible agrees with this idea of stewardship, that God is the provider of blessings, earthly and spiritual, and that He holds men and women responsible for dispensing his blessings to others:

I hold the shepherds accountable for my flock – Ezekiel 34:10

The just distribution of national wealth is especially vital now when our economy is just recovering from the impact of the global financial crisis. The International Monetary Fund has projected that the global economic growth will average about 3.1% in 2010. In Singapore, economists have predicted a 3.5% growth for next year, while in his 2010 Budget speech, our Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak has predicted a growth of 2-3%.

But the preliminary question is; what makes the budget a moral document? Taking a cue from a letter signed by leaders of various American religious communities to the American Congress, a budget fundamentally answers the 6 questions below:

1. Does the budget provide those in need with the assistance necessary to build self-reliant, purposeful lives?

2. Does the budget provide adequately for all God’s children, including the poor and sick, the old and very young?

3. Does the budget strengthen the foundations of our country in order to make us safer and more secure?

4. Does the budget protect God’s creation, the environment?

5. Does the budget spread its burdens and rewards fairly, or are some groups given special unearned privilege, while others are excluded from [the Nation's] bounty and opportunity?

6. Does the budget promote justice and equality by providing for basic human needs in health care, education and other areas?

Najib’s 2010 Budget was titled: 1Malaysia: Together We Prosper (hereafter will be referred to as the “Budget”). Its objective is telling, in the title of the speech itself. The Budget focused on three strategies:

1. Driving the country towards a high-income economy

2. Ensuring holistic and sustainable development

3. Focusing on the well being of the Rakyat (people)

This paper aims to examine the Budget through the lens of Christian theology. However we would not be doing a point-by-point commentary on the Budget, but will instead focus on key areas and with that hope to explore the implication of the Budget from a theological perspective.

Income Tax Relief: The More You Have, The More You Get

Income tax is one way the Government receives revenues from salaried workers. The Government in turn will spend the money in form of social and economic development, including providing public amenities, health care, education as well as creating more economic opportunities for its citizens. This way, the salaried workers will be able to share a small portion of the fruits of their labors with those who for unfortunate reasons are not able to work and create wealth themselves.

For the persons on the street, the most lauded elements in the Budget is the increase of personal tax relief from RM8,000 to RM9,000 and the 1% income tax deduction on the highest tax bracket for individuals, from 27% to 26%. It was estimated that the tax reduction will put back RM400 million into the people’s pocket. This is definitely commendable especially in view of the slow economic recovery.

Nevertheless there is a problem. The average annual income of Malaysians is about RM25,000. This means they do not qualify for the 1% tax reduction while they will still be taxed at about 7%, which will be about RM355, counting the extra tax relief of RM1,000. This year, the same salary was taxed RM385, roughly.

What about for the high salaried group, the 5.5% of our population earning more than RM10,000 monthly? If a person earns 10 times more than the average Malaysian salary, about RM250,000, he was taxed about RM52,665 this year. Next year, he will be taxed RM50,985.

This means, the higher your salary is, the more money the Government will give you in tax relief.

Imagine those who are earning below RM10,000 (a factory operator in Penang brings home an average of RM10,000 annually). They are not taxed this year, and they are not taxed next year. Government goodies do not reach them.

The tax relief also does not benefit homemakers, who are generally women in our Malaysian context, and retirees who generally do not have any income.

Therefore the RM400 million are put only into the pockets of those who are not the neediest in our country. The neediest do not benefit from tax relief as the biggest cut goes to those who are already earning big money.

The society is a social representation of the Trinity, where individuals’ social identities and property acquirements are dependent on one another. Thus, each individual member must be treated with entitlement and charity. Low income-earners and those who are non-salaried should be entitled to benefits from the tax relief, in fact, more so for them than those already earning large salaries. Tax relief for high earners is incentive and reward for hard work, but tax relief for the poor is relief in the real sense.

Credit Card Fee: The Working Class Loses More

The fact is credit card has become a norm in the way we do daily transactions. In the end of the first quarter of this year, there were about 11 million principal credit cards issued. Yet, the supposed convenience has landed Malaysians in an RM22.13 billion debt as of last April. That’s almost 12% of the total Budget. Studies also show that only about 30% of credit card holders pay up their balance in full every month.

In order to curb overspending through credit cards, the Budget introduced a fee of RM50 on each principal credit card and RM25 on each supplementary card. The amount will be rather insignificant for individuals to decide whether or not to have a credit card or two. At most, it will deter them from having too many. But having lesser cards does not mean lesser credit spending. This will then defeat the Government’s purpose to curb credit spending as studies have shown that those buying with credit cards are likelier to spend 17% more than those paying cash. While the Government’s intention is valid and thus commendable, the blanket fee program as a solution is ineffective and futile.

There are other problems with the scheme. Firstly, the fee will be seen as punitive even to the 30% who paid up their monthly balance in full and the other majority who are managing their credits well.

Secondly, the credit card fee will put additional pressure on the average Malaysian families who do not have much cash flow and needed the credit facility while waiting for their monthly paycheck. Because credit cards are easy to be obtained – with sales people signing up customers at supermarkets, food court even walkways – most families who own credit cards will have at least 2 cards. That alone will cost the family about RM100 next year.

The collection of the principal credit card fees alone will put about RM550 million back to the Government’s coffer. Remember the Government had earlier given the people about RM400 million where the bulk will go to the highest paid strata of the working group? This in effect means, while the high salaried workers made much more profit from Government’s tax relief, everyone, including the majority of the average salaried workers will have to contribute back to the Government in forms of credit card fees.

From the discussion on individual income tax relief and the re-introduction of the credit card fee, it seemed that the average persons on the street do not have much to cheer for in this gloomy economic climate. The Government’s verbosity in the Budget and reform rhetoric are misleading. The fact is that there is no program to assist the majority of the hardworking lower-middle income Malaysians who will be struggling with cash flow in the nearest future. What might be worst is when such charges, which intended to be a market mechanism turns into a market norm, where an immature and naive population see this financial barrier as adding to the prestige of owning credit cards. This does not reflect economic justice and market moral. Our economic agenda fails when it ignores the suffering majority.

We require real solution to rampant credit spending and not one which adds unnecessary burden on the people. The Eucharist offers a critic to both the credit culture and the Government’s futile and distressing move. ‘Values’ do not borrow their characteristics from the indefinite future of humans. ‘Values’ are transformed in the historical death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus: a solid reality of the past that connects into the present.

Eucharist theology as remembering the past and connecting it into the present restores for us our perception of all values, including monetary value and its characteristic. Therefore, on one hand, we have to reckon to the fact that money’s value is rooted in the realism of the past and present, not in an imaginary characteristic that has often being oversimplified as ‘credit’. While on the other hand the Eucharist enable us to critique the Government’s capitalizing from this fictitious mechanism as reinforcing the unreal and causes unnecessary distress on the people.

Blanket Rule In Economy Is Unjust

In addition to the above, the Budget also includes a re-entry of the Real Property Gain Tax (RPGT) where gains from the disposal of property are subjected to 5% tax. The Government’s reason for the re-introduction of the RPGT scrapped in 2007 was to curb property speculation. Yet unlike the previous RPGT where the taxed percentage from 30%-0% depends on the number of years the property disposed were held, the new RPGT is irrespective of time. This means, a speculator, selling his property investment a year after purchase will be subjected to the same percentage of RPGT as a house owner selling off her house after 20 years of ownership to finance her son’s tertiary education, if that was her second property.

This is in effect another unreasonable blanket rule which will penalize both property speculator and genuine house owners looking to liquefy her fixed asset or to upgrade to a newer house.

The 2010 Budget in applying new financial and unnecessary regulations on almost everyone seems like fairness, that is, everyone have an equal share of the national burden. But the difference is this: the highly paid gave back the same amount as the poor and lower-middle income group, while receiving a bigger portion than them. The average hardworking household struggling with monthly cash flow issue will have to pay the same amount of tax on their wealth as the high riding speculators making tens of thousands.

Far from spreading national wealth, the Budget is putting in writing an immoral principle, it is in effect legislating that the poor and working class have to share the bills of the rich, that is, after the latter had eaten the largest portion of the pie.

A market economy means that the hardworking laborer gets to keep and enjoy the fruits of his toil, but alas,

A poor person’s field may produce abundant food, but injustice sweeps it away. (Proverbs 13:23)

No Goodies We Ask For

Real economic reform is still missing in the 2010 Budget. Government claimed that we should not turn our economy into a protectionist one through legislation, but yet, common sense and top Economists such as Prof. K.S. Jomo and Dr. Terence Gomez have indicated that Malaysia practices patronage economy. This not only impedes the free market process, but also continues to aggregate wealth in the hands of the few well-connected middle class patrons. Hard working lower income group, the poor and the new urban poor, especially young and struggling families will not only suffer the consequent of lack of economic opportunities reserved for political elites, but also suffer at the hand of an unregulated playing ground of the rich and powerful.

For decades, workers are denied minimum wages, job opportunities are reduced by the uncontrolled influxes of foreign labors, legal and illegal, women and senior citizens are not empowered to be self-sustaining and continue to be dependents of their families and at old age becoming burdens. The poor and the marginalized have been isolated and will continue to be isolated from the wealth of the nation by lack of political will which ignore real social reforms and opted for mega projects such as bridges and buildings, and even that, at highly overspent cost.

Although the Government ran a huge nationwide campaign to promote the concept of 1Malaysia, we are still seeing racial categorization in our economy. Malaysians are still divided into Bumiputera and non-Bumiputera, with the former accorded certain socio-economic and political privileges such as quotas and special subsidies. Such forced categorization dampens any effort of national integration. The ‘poor’ is an economic label, not a racial one. Therefore Government’s aid must reach out to the poor irrespective of their skin color, religion, gender and political ideology.

If a king deals with the poor without favoritism, his throne will be established forever. (Proverbs 29:14)

Good Governance, Moral Leadership Not Budgeted

The latest Auditor General’s report reveals that overpayment in Government’s contracts may amount up to RM28 billion. To put this in perspective, that is seven times the RM 400 million which the Government is purportedly giving back to the people in tax relief and deductions. The Budget’s allocation for economic and infrastructure development is only RM25 billion and for social development such as education, health care, housing and welfare is only RM20 billion.

Or to put it in another way, every Malaysian regardless of age, race and religion will be able to receive RM1,000 each if the Government decides to give a stimulus bonus next year with the money lost to overspending.

Wealth is worthless without proper management and good governance.

Mere talk leads only to poverty. (Proverbs 14:23)

Years after years, billions of Ringgit were allocated for projects and programs in the national budget. And years after years, Malaysians have read about corruptions and other abuses which led to the lost of huge amounts of people’s money. The implementation of this year’s reduced Budget, although still at an enormous sum of RM191 billion, will turn out to be “business as usual”, unless concrete actions are taken immediately.

Allocating money is one part, the least of the strategy; ensuring effective implementation is the measure of success. The Government’s seriousness in running the country and implementing the Budget well must be reflected in the Budget itself. If it is weighty enough, it warrants a place in the moral document of the nation. Mechanisms, including legislation and independent monitoring bodies, must be set up to ensure that public fund is not abused, as has been frequently reported in the press.

Take for example the case of the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM – Malay: Polis Di-Raja Malaysia). Out of the total RM3.7 billion for national security development, the PDRM was given slightly more than RM1 billion in the Budget with the focus of meeting one of the National Key Result Areas (NKRAs) announced by the Prime Minister; to reduce street crime rate by 20% in 2010.

Yet, the Budget continues to ignore the dismal performance of the PDRM, including the abuse of power, rampant corruption and the worrying cases of deaths in custody. The Home Ministry reported that between 2003 and 2007, there were 1531 cases of deaths in custody.

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? – Who will guard the guards? Who polices the police? The Government has thus far ignored the reports and recommendations of the Police Royal Commission 2005 to establish an Independent Police Complains and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) to monitor the police and restore public confidence on the law enforcing agency.

The Government has also completely ignored the resolutions of the Parliamentary Roundtable on A New IGP for a Safe Malaysia convened by the Opposition Members of Parliament in July this year.

RM3.7 billion is allocated to improving national security but without any independent and effective monitoring, even given our country’s experience of abuse of public money. It has to be noted that RM3.7 billion is only a development budget, the management of national security has been allocated another sum, unreported in the Budget, but believed to be more than RM15 billion (estimation based on 2009 RM18 billion budget).

The same can be said of the Malaysia Anti Corruption Commission (MACC) which has a badly tainted public image, not least due to our annual drop on the Transparency International’s Index of Corruption for the past decade and the recent case of Teoh Beng Hock who was found dead in MACC Headquarter after he was brought in for investigation. The Government realized that the MACC has failed to gain the public’s trust and so set out to enhance its image. However pumping in money to paint the damaged image of MACC does not in any way make the organization more trustworthy, efficient and effective. After all, a beautiful mural does not turn a prison into a palace.

Another agenda of good governance not reflected into the Budget is the open tender process for government contracts. As mentioned above, overpayments cost us to lose RM28 billion. Yet, without a transparent process of awarding tender for public works, we not only lose money but also risk having substandard quality of work. The latest tragedy where 22 school children attending the 1Malaysia Camp organized by the Education Ministry fell into the rapid Sungai Kampar after the bridge they were using collapsed. 3 children lost their lives in the incident. The bridge was completed only two weeks before.

Finally, we return to a full circle to the Budget being a moral document. The Budget being an important moral document must reflect moral leaderships. This includes documenting our vision and program to be a respectable civilization.

Without moral vision and moral leadership, a civilization will fail to progress. Malaysia is facing serious social crisis. Corruption is taken for granted from top-down. Our judiciary has been made a mockery with inconsistent and unjust sentencing and recently was further marred by the controversial Lingam’s tape. Our democracy is in a mess with the coup in Perak as well as the luring of representatives to change party by various means. The old issues of restricted press freedom, outdated and unjust laws such as the Internal Security Act have not been resolved and we are facing new social and moral problems such as human trafficking, abuse of foreign domestic helpers which sometimes led to death as in the recent case of 36-years old Indonesian maid Mautik Hani and even the atrocious rape of the Penan women in Sarawak, some who are under-aged girls.

In reforming the moral climate of the country, the fundamental change must necessarily include a reform in our democracy. The Government must show its sincerity to open up more democratic space in order for a healthy competition of ideas and political ideologies to take place. For the first time in half a century, Malaysia now has an opportunity to develop a Schumpeterian democracy where a stronger alternative political voice is heard. Free press and freedom of independent expression must be legally guaranteed. The Opposition party must be given the space to compete with the Ruling party for the votes of the people in a free and fair election. A healthy democracy where political parties compete for the people’s vote will safeguard the people’s interest against unchecked and unchallenged power. Recent research from Oxford University also confirmed the intuitive assumption that allowing fair competition between political parties increases the country’s economic performance.

Postscript: Striving for A Social Theology

The German theologian Jurgen Moltmann wrote, “The symbol of the cross in the church points to the God who was crucified not between two candles on an altar, but between two thieves in the place of the skull, where the outcasts belong, outside the gates of the city.” To be more explicit in the gospel’s context, Jesus was crucified between two political rebels due to political reasons. We domesticate our theology when we restrict the Church to “religious stuff”. Our Scripture is replete with a one-sided bias for the marginalized, the oppressed and the poor. The gospel if to be good news at all must be good news to them.

Jesus said, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor.” (Luke 4:18)

Therefore, theology cannot be unconcerned with the “things of this world.” To quote another German theologian Johann Baptist Metz, “The prices of world trade are not a matter of indifference for the kingdom of God,” because,

The righteous care about justice for the poor, but the wicked have no such concern. (Proverbs 29:7)

Undoubtedly there are many congregations and individual Christians who have been living out this gospel to the poor. Nonetheless, the civil battle between fundamentalism and liberal gospel had paralyzed the Church of our time to break out of her dogmatism and devotionist religion to reach out fully to embrace the world. Our reaching out has been restricted to “reaching out to bring ‘em in”, our evangelism, proclaiming of the good news has been restricted to holy club recruitment drives.

Yet, the Bible tells us that the sin-stricken and groaning Creation awaits the liberating act of the sons of God, the collective Church (Romans 8:18). But we soon realized that our best response is to participate in the pains of the suffering masses (v 23). It is easy for us to give hope and healing from distance, but such hope cannot be very hopeful to a suffering world. That’s James for you, mere words of blessings and prayers are not enough.

Like the God of Isaiah who rolled up his sleeves and got into the mud himself (Isaiah 52:10), Christians are called to get involve, to be involve especially in the experience of suffering, to suffer together. That is the meaning of “compassion”, the original Latin means, “to suffer together”.

And the question naturally arises, where is God in all this?

God is “ever co-suffering” with the suffering world, through the Christians who are co-sufferers with the world (Romans 8:26). That is the beauty of it all, God who is ever-involved dispenses his healing, that is, the true hope of emancipation through his Church when she suffers in hope together with the suffering world; in other words, when the Church has compassion for the suffering world.

Since the 8th of March, the Church found itself in a dilemma. On one hand, Christians like the rest of the country, intuitively knew that they had a part to play, whether as Christians or as citizens, to correct the wrongs in our country. Yet on the other hand, the Church cannot find in her book the theology to response to such situation. Quite a number took to the initial hype of social action and pastors and Christians alike were talking about “cultural mandates” and the social dimension of the gospel. Few took another step forward, even cautiously, to participate in socio-political conversations cropping up in every segment of the society. But many ended up leaving it to their congregation to “do it in your personal capacity outside the church”.

It is time for the Malaysian Church to realize that there is but one dimension to the gospel, the social dimension. The gospel cannot be a formula for a cluster of religious people. It is the good news of hope for the whole world. With many Christians taking up the challenge of participation rather than isolation, especially in the arena of politics, it is crucial for the Church to be able to bless their endeavors not merely with words and prayers, but also by theological praxis (actions/practices). And like the gospel, there is only one dimension to theology, the social theology; because everyone,

The rich and the poor have a common bond: God is the maker of them all. (Proverbs 22:2)

Steven Sim was formerly Special Assistant to Penang State Exco for Youth and Sports and Women, Family & Community Development. He is currently taking time off to pursue his post-graduate degree. Joshua Woo is currently pursuing his studies at Trinity Theological College, Singapore.

It is wonderful to know that, whatever circumstances we are facing, nothing is able to separate us from ‘the love of God that is in Christ Jesus, our Lord’ (see Romans 8:28-39).

All of us would do well to dwell on the experience of both Jesus Christ and the apostle Paul as we consider the subject of power.

Paul, writing to the Christians in Corinth, says:

2 Corinthians 13: 2 – 4

I already gave you a warning when I was with you the second time. I now repeat it while absent: On my return I will not spare those who sinned earlier or any of the others, since you are demanding proof that Christ is speaking through me. He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you. For to be sure, he was crucified in weakness, yet he lives by God’s power. Likewise, we are weak in him, yet by God’s power we will live with him to serve you.

2 Corinthians 12: 7 – 10

To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

We are in great danger when those in authority over us (in all the aspects of our lives) DELIGHT IN POWER BUT DENY WEAKNESS.

However, it would seem that such anecdotes only tell part of the story. In my own research on Christian political engagement, I have come across Christians telling me that the last General Election was a non-event either for themselves or for their churches. Consider the case of Ms. C, who told me that she had been trying to get her church to organize a voter registration campaign among church members but was met with indifference by the leadership and members alike. And then, there is the case of Ms. P, who said that her church (and by extension, her denomination) considers politics as strictly outside the province of the church. And that politics held no interest for her.

It is undeniable that some Christians have become politically aware but the vast majority shy away from politics. Most Christians seem to have the attitude of separating politics from the life of the church and the both shall never meet … amen to that!

Such an attitude signifies that Christians have fundamentally misunderstood the workings of democratic politics. Democracy requires people to be active participant in the democratic political process to ensure the well-being of the nation. Political power belongs to the people and not governments. Governments are only loaned its power to rule in order to ensure the well-being of the people. Where it is given, it can be taken back. People have the right to take back political power if they judged that what the government is doing is detrimental to their welfare. For this to happen, it requires people to become aware of the political issues of the day and become active participant in the political life of the nation.

In Matt. 22:21, we read “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” Consider then … are we neglecting this commandment of Christ by putting a wall between church and politics? It is ironic that Christians claim that God is sovereign in all spheres of our lives … except perhaps politics which politely remains outside of the life of a Christian.

In refusing to take an interest and participating in the political life of the nation, have we been derelict of our political responsibility as citizens? More importantly, are we being obedient to the teaching of Christ as described in Matt. 22:21?

Our nation has reached a critical juncture in our political history which can well determine the path which our beloved country will take. What is required now is for Christians to become active citizens and not passive spectators. We cannot afford to run away from our responsibility in determining the future direction which our country will take.

I even repeated this observation when I was part of the Senior Management at Mimos Berhad when I noticed the obvious tolerance of the indiscipline of corruption.

When these two observed truths are put together into a mental model one can understand why Umno still tolerates the indiscipline of corruption.

We the people thought that the former Umno President finally had ushered into the nation new values of anti corruption along the lines of “bersih, cekap, and amanah” and had set that standard for the nation with even a promised Police Commission and the a new ACA, now called MACC.

We the people in fact gave him 94 percent of our votes in full and total agreement.

But, that Umno President is now history and current Umno values calls “such indiscipline only a technical matter;” and not really corruption.

Even worse, at Branch and State levels of Umno, they had unanimously agreed to nominate the former “proven to be corrupt VP” as their candidate for the by-election in Bagan Pinang.

Even Umno HQ has also agreed and fully endorsed this candidate.

In fact, no one of any standing in Umno (other than Ku Li and TDM) has spoken against it;= not even my friend Shahrir Samad.

This then represents Umno’s value of leadership exemplified on the issue of the indiscipline of corruption.

Simply say no to corruption

Thankfully though, three outspoken civil society commentators have totally disagreed with this operative value.

And therefore I think and believe that there is still hope in this country for an anti corruption alliance made up of ordinary and simple people who want to say: “NO to bribery and corruption.”

These three civil society activists have encouraged me to reflect more on this subject and therefore I choose to write about it now, after the events of last week.

The three are the Aliran president, and bloggers, Tohkong Mosjid and Thomas Lee.

Our nation needs a new standard and improved quality of anti corruption values.

Can I therefore invite ordinary people to start a movement called an Anti Corruption Commitment Alliance, or ACCA?

No, I do not mean that we ask accountants to write our new standards, but rather that “all citizens who want to see this new value applied in all areas of life come together to form a new network as a force of influence?”

Much like “the so called third force in MCA” who chose to “cut off the corrupted fish head of both representative leaders?”

Can we call this the ACCA of ordinary citizenship, a new value system that holds not just one man and his partners accountable but also uses God’s values about truth and justice to redefine our values in our lived environment: that human existence is for the furtherance and pursuance of justice for all communities on earth and not just our own.

Traditional accounting only deals with a stake and share holder analysis which is inclusive but excludes the rest of marginalized and uninvolved community.

Even if we bring the Corporate Social Responsibility angle into our thinking and calculation, the marginalized and disconnected are excluded.

I am therefore calling for a value principle of accountability premised on the God ordained ideal of human responsibility, which can be viewed as human stewardship of God’s values.

My theology of corruption

If Man is created by God and made in His Image, to have a conscience and make choices as does God, then, what is revealed by this God about what is good, true and right remains the critical issues of rightness which we often call righteousness.

Does any religion or spiritual teaching for that matter have any doubts in their definitions about corruption?

Corruption simply put is a moral deviation from a standard of what we have agreed is not right, or true, or not good.

This definition and standard becomes our morality of corruption.

Therefore, if Umno defined that “using money as undue influence to convince others to vote for you is wrong,” then, any deviation from this standard is corruption.

There is no need for a re definition of what is “technical corruption and what is technical non corruption.”

Corruption is corruption.

If the Umno Supreme Council agreed with the Disciplinary Committee (and, Najib was a deputy president), then corruption has occurred and a standard had been clearly violated.

Therefore, dear President of Umno and Prime Minister of Malaysia, please do not re-rationalize the current corruption of our national values.

It is not just a technical matter.

Righteousness must prevail

Over the past weekend two sets of votes were taken for or against this indiscipline of corruption.

We the people were not directly involved in those particular choices but please be aware that the choices made will now challenge the National Front Coalition you call BN.

We the people can only continue to pray that righteousness prevails. We cannot change anything else until the next GE.

Regardless, please be advised dear Sir that we the people are committed against this indiscipline of corruption.

The PKFZ case has highlighted again the true and real corruption of values in Malaysia and further, as you are well aware, it is proven beyond doubt that the indiscipline of corruption engulfs the total public service system.

Therefore, I applaud the Super Task Force made up of many “gazetted authority holders.”

My only request to the chief secretary (of the civil service) is to please not leave any stone unturned.

Reveal all indiscipline of corruption, call a spade a spade and let us clean up this country of corrupt values once and for all.

Let us all take the real risk of leadership, which is to make a stand for righteousness.

Let history decide whether it was a worthwhile risk or not.

President Obama even won a Nobel Peace Prize for simply having the courage of audacity of hope.

Minister Ong Tee Keat has paid for his stand against corruption.

Lee Hwa Beng too has set a very good example by pursuing righteousness regardless of consequences.

Even Paul Low has accepted collateral fire for his relationship in this issue.

The ordinary people of Malaysia only want a simple and clean country devoid of any serious and untoward corruption.

If Singapore can do it, surely we can do it too.

Therefore, my prayer is that God will give the governing authorities the wisdom, strength and courage to seek justice, do good, and seek to live humbly before the face of a very Holy God.

May God bless Malaysia!

Originally published on 13 October 2009 in Malaysiakini. Reproduced with permission from the author.

(Psalm 121:7-8, New International Version)

I repeat these two verses many times in the car, both when I am driving and also when I am being driven!

The number of hungry in the world has reached a “historic high” of more than 1 billion people, the UN food agency stated recently, blaming the global financial crisis for the surge.

One-sixth of humanity or 1.02 billion people do not get enough to eat. It is predicted an 11% increase for all of 2009.. This situation is a world emergency that calls for action from both developing and developed countries. It is known that a child dies of malnutrition every 6 seconds.

2. NO THOUGHT

a) At mealtimes?

At a Christian gathering, the Christian leader who says the prayer before the sumptuous meal, will often use such words: “Heavenly Father, we thank you for your love for us and for the provision of this food. May our bodies be strengthened for your service and may you bless our fellowship together. We ask this, with thanksgiving, in the name of Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Lord.” AMEN (so be it, I agree) but NO AMEN FROM ME!

I do not disagree with the words he has spoken but I disagree with his failure to remember those in great need, including the hungry. The prayer is all about US and OURS but nothing about OTHERS. (This is really a form of selfishness).

How about the prayer before meals (often called Grace) in our Christian families?

b) In our prayer time and budget?

World Vision and TEAR Fund are two organisations which can supply us with prayer bulletins and also forward our gifts to people in needy areas, without holding back a large percentage of the money in administrative expenses. (www.tearfund.org and www.worldvision.com.my)

c) In Involving Others?

Once we ourselves get involved, we must recruit our Christian friends, our local churches and our nation so that our motto will be NO FOOD? MUCH THOUGHT!