Position Paper 5 by Munira Shahidah (0729796)

Position Paper 5

“Counselors are the key to the success of the 1Malaysia concept”.

1Malaysia concept was introduced by our Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Mohd Najib bin Tun Hj. Abdul Razak when he was announced as fifth Prime Minister six months ago. The objective of this concept is to integrate all the races in Malaysia including Malay, Chinese, Indian, Iban, Kadazan and many more. There are many ways that had been planned in way to made this concept success and achieve the objective. Even, the budget for 2010 which was announced by our Prime Minister two days ago also based on 1Malaysia concept where everybody and every race get their rights. However, this concept still early and have some group do not implement this concept on the daily life.

At point of view of counselors, counselors are the key to the success of the 1Malaysia concept with cooperation between society and individual. To make the concept success, counselors can do some programme that participate by all races. The objective of the programme must be to make sure that the participant do not prejudice with other races and respect them as who they are. In way of that, counselor can create a game or does some kind of movie or theatre which is combine all races to make them cooperate and help each other like Allahyarhamah Yasmin Ahmad had done during her lived.

Here, counselors have to be creative and innovative by creating such a new programme. Not just sit and waiting for the client come and hear the problem. That is the typical kind of counselors. Counselors can do a programme like Multicultural Awareness Campaign. Counselors can collaborate with Ministry of Artistry, Cultural and Heritage to fulfill this campaign. We can get the opportunities to get the races together and knowing each other thru this campaign. Besides that, we can advertise the benefit of integrated thru mass media like advertisement in television or radio and so on.

In school, counselors can cooperate with other teachers and administration to be as a role model to the students in how to interact and integrate with others. This is important in way to give them the indirect lessen how to fulfill the 1Malaysian concept. If we as a counselors or adults do not show the proper way how to integrate with other races, student will blame and appoint us as not following the concept that be introduced by our Prime Minister.

On the other hand, there some people said that counselors can not do anything about the 1Malaysian concept. They argue that individual prefer to do their own personal life. No one can disturb it. For them, this concept is just for a political in way to attract the voters. They also mention that the political themselves do not implement it as the way it should. However, as counselors, we should convince this type of people to change their mindset of the 1Malaysia concept. We should show them how important is the integration among the races in way to maintain the peace and harmony among the citizen.

For a conclusion, we as counselors should play our roles as best as we could to make sure that we can help the government to achieve the objective of the 1Malaysia concept. The government needs our services and we can do it. With the collaboration between us and government, insyaallah the 1Malaysian concept will be success and long lasting even though the government change.