YOU know how people often say that young people are the leaders of our future?

Well, the future is now, and it has arrived at our doorsteps. The sooner we realise this, the better. There is no doubt – our young people are the leaders of today – but for young people to rise up as strong leaders, they need to be able to learn from the older generation, leaders who have gone before them.

Are our older politicians setting a good example, especially those in the upper echelons of government? Are our politicians role models who command respect in the way they carry and conduct themselves? Are our politicians just and fair-minded in planning and implementing policies? Do they run the country with integrity? Can they be trusted with managing our country’s finances and resources?

Notwithstanding individual self-responsibility, human nature is such that people have an inbuilt tendency to follow what others do, be it good or bad. People are also more inclined to look up to those holding positions of power or leadership, which is why leadership can either make or break a nation.

So when something that is traditionally viewed as negative becomes widespread among politicians and government officials, society takes this as a strong cue for what is acceptable or can be tolerated. This explains how certain practices can eventually become deeply ingrained in a particular society, even if they are actually toxic and ethically questionable.

In addition, for young people to rise up as strong leaders, they cannot be indifferent or apathetic towards politics. Such attitudes would signal the death of democracy and the death of a nation. The older generation will not be around forever, and eventually the time will come when the younger generation will have to take over completely.

Therefore, young people must have a genuine interest in current affairs and politics, for the two are inextricably connected. Nothing in the life of a nation can exist on its own in a vacuum, and nation-building is only meaningful and effective when those at the forefront have an all-rounded vision for the future.

No doubt, 2020 has not been the best year for Malaysia. In fact, this is probably quite an understatement as this year has seen an endless string of unprecedented disasters for the country.

However, regardless of what goes on in our political sphere, our young people must not shut down and walk away from politics. Turning a blind eye and a deaf ear in frustration may be understandable, but it is certainly not justifiable.

Don’t get me wrong – there is nothing wrong with pausing for a moment to catch our breath. However, it is not right to give up on the land we call home. If we give up on our country, who else would fight for us?

Malaysia needs new blood, Malaysia needs fresh ideas, but above all, Malaysia needs a new brand of politics. Forget old ways of thinking, for they have brought us nowhere and left us stuck in the mud.

So young people, now is our time to rise up! Be the change we desperately want to see in this country! Press on, for together we can carry that message of hope and turn this nation around! – October 16, 2020.

* Lara Ling reads The Malaysian Insight.