The Malaysian Defense Minister said that the national service might be extended.[1] He reportedly said that three months were too short a duration to develop noble character and sense of patriotism. The suggestion to extend the program is not new. The then Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak himself suggested in 2007 that “one year is most ideal, but two years would be better.”
Implicitly, the effort by the government to extend the duration suggests that the program in its current form has failed.
When it was first introduced, it was described as if it was a panacea. But a panacea it is not.
After 18 years exposed to the Malaysian reality, it is hard to believe a 3-month make-belief, propagandistic summer camp will undo what some perceived as unwanted behaviors and worldview shaped by the society by much, never mind that the government itself partly contributes to the problem through the mangled education system. Those in the government know this. Else, they would not have wanted to extend the duration.
While there are reasons to believe by stretching the duration longer may make the program more effective for better or for worse — for me, it is the worse — it is easy to parallel this to the sunk cost fallacy. A program fails and somehow by investing more into it, it will work. If indeed a longer program will fail just as it has failed in its current form, that would mean more public money wasted. Already the program is costing more than RM500 million per year according Khairy Jamaluddin.[2]
If the extension would improve the program, I would still oppose it. I oppose the program on principle, not because of its duration or its general farce.
While the current Malaysian national service is a misnomer — especially when compared to proper program that exists in Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea that has militaristic aspects — the Malaysian version is still conscription. It is a draft. Extending the duration only makes the draft worse, never mind that for many, it is an interruption to their education plan.
Never mind the deaths associated with the program. Having a program that runs more than 3 months will increase the likelihood and the cases of death in the program. For a summer camp that is not really part of the national defense force, it is deadly farce.
The national service is unneeded. All of its objectives and modules — in its website, the four modules are physical training, nation-building, character-building and community service[3] — can be done in schools. Or better, voluntarily in or outside of schools.
Did you not do all these things while in elementary and high schools? Oh wait, even if you did, it was within a largely Malay environment, a largely Chinese environment, etc. And the government is supporting that system.
The fact that the national service is considered necessary by the power that says something about the public education system: it is defective. One would expect the solution is to improve the system.
But no. To some, the solution is to introduce another compulsory program that has shown to fail.
A failed program to augment a defective education system.
What a policy.
[1] — KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – The National Service training programme’s three-month period may be extended, said Defence Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
He added that the ministry was studying the possibility as three months was too short a time to develop noble characters and foster a sense of patriotism.
“The matter will be discussed at a meeting of the National Service Training Council,” he told reporters after the presentation of 2010 National Service Training Department Excellent Service awards at the ministry here yesterday. [NS term may be extended. The Star. May 27 2011]
[2] — Khairy sebelum ini meminta kerajaan mengurangkan pembelanjaan untuk program yang dikatakannya kurang berkesan dan menelan belanja yang besar contohnya Program Latihan Khidmat Negara (PLKN) yang memakan belanja RM560 juta setahun. [Tempoh Latihan PLKN Mungkin Dipanjangkan – Zahid. Bernama. May 26 2011]
[3] — See Training Module at Jabatan Latihan Khidmat Negara. Accessed May 28 2011