Poor Attitudes and Habits Will Cost Us!

The Prime Minister (Anwar Ibrahim) called for professionalism and honesty in the single largest workforce, the civil service.  What is stunting and crippling us is the lack of the ‘big A’ factor, ie poor attitudes. Poor attitudes have made us less competitive in so many ways compared to our neighbours – and in the global marketplace. 

Tax and petroleum revenue have been used to finance the building of first world infrastructure, ranging from skyscrapers and modern transport infrastructure to a new administrative capital. 

Source: https://www.b-x.com.au

But aside from an entrenched culture of corruption, poor attitudes are hindering us from becoming one of the most successful financial, economic and cultural hubs in the region. 

Even tourism has suffered. Despite the modern infrastructure and the resorts that have been developed all over the country, many are impacted by poor maintenance. Our Transport Minister  has pointed out how Malaysia, despite all its modern infrastructure, is suffering from a ‘third world’ maintenance culture.  Look at our MRT trains breaking down. These are new trains. Commuters were confused why trains malfunctioned on all lines.

To reshape our future might prove to be a challenging task, given such poor attitudes towards maintenance, accountability and long-term business sustainability. It will require a ‘reform-driven’ revolution to change public attitudes. It is not SOP but attitude. You can have a brilliant SOP but poor attitude will result in a building or asset falling into disrepair. You can have a sub-standard SOP but great attitude will result in good maintenance culture. It is not SOP or system but people that make the difference! Look at Japan or other more developed nations, attitudes keep buildings or assets in top condition. At the recent World Cup in Qatar, the Japanese spectators were cleaning-up the stadium. No coercion, no green wave from PAS, no monetary benefit or religious doctrine, they did it voluntarily and with cheerfulness. But in Malaysia, we rather have the poor Bangladeshi worker pick-up our misdemeanours.

Reference:

Poor attitudes and habits costing Malaysia dearly, JD Lovrenciear, ALIRAN, 16 Dec 2022