Its is with great interest i read that this country's first lady, Datin Deri Dr Siti Hasmah Mohd Ali, the PM's wife, was conferred the Darjah Utama Neri Melaka (DUNM) which carries the title Datuk Seri Utama. She's done some great things for this country in the last few decades, not just as the wife of our PM, but in her own right as a person. Her award got me thinking: how do the powers-that-be decide who receives awards, Datuk-ship?
We've got one trick ponies such as Azhar Mansor who sailed solo around the world, Abdul Malik Mydin who swam the English channel, M. Magendran and N. Mohandass who conquered Mt. Everest - there is no doubt that they have or will receive awards of state for their achievement. Without being disrepectful to them or their achievements, the question must be asked: does an achievement such as theirs, being one-off, short term, and, realistically speaking, limited in its national impact, deserve such high and official recognition? Do they really deserve their titles, their Datukships?
Let's take them and put them into perspective.
My father, Prof. Izham Cheong, a dedicated professor of medicine, who has spent more than 25 years training the doctors of this country (there is a running joke in the local medical community: throw a stone and you will hit a doctor who has been trained by Prof Izham), spurning all opportunities to be a multi-millionaire by going into the private sector, has never once been considered for state recognition. Just like the Malaysian "super-heroes" mentioned in the preceding paragraph, he has risked his life on the job: being one of the few local doctors who specialize in infectious diseases, his life is in danger each time he treats AIDS patients. Over the years, he has directly, and indirectly through the doctors he has trained, saved tens of thousands of Malaysian lives, including more than his fair share of royalty. And yet, after all of this, after years of service, his only reward was "thank you" and a healthy golden handshake when he retired earlier this year. The recognition of the society, of the state through the conferment of a title is perhaps something that would have meant much more to him.
Another case in point, my housemate's father was for many years, the headmaster of one of Malaysia's most prestigious schools, Penang Free. Indirectly, he is probably responsible for the development of a whole generation of leaders for this country - but when he retired, again, there was silence from the state and from society when there should have been resounding applause.
People like our fathers, and perhaps like your parents too - to people like them, titles, datukships, perhaps don't matter to much. As sincere human beings, they did what they did for the love of the job and for the love of this country. But just because such intangible rewards are not important to them, it doesn't excuse the state from ignoring them.
If there are Malaysians who ever deserve the reward of the state, it would be people like them. That's why when Datin Seri Siti Hasmah received her most recent award, i beamed and smiled and felt grateful for her and all that's she's done for us. And that's why when a Malaysian is one day awarded a datukship for walking around the world barefooted, i will feel a degree of scorn and resentment.
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