Our so called Datuk

I am absolutely amazed and appalled at the same time regarding the recent Datukship awarded to Shah Rukh Khan. Not only is it wrong, it is enormously ridiculous to have done such a thing, and let me tell you why. First of all, it sends a ghastly message to everyone that we have over looked our very own people, those who have made tremendous amounts of contributions in various fields. Malaysians should be given the upmost priority when it comes to recognizing and rewarding those who really deserve to be awarded because of the contributions they have made to the nation. Not only is this very condecsending to us Malaysians, but it also runs the risk that the title 'Datuk' will eventually lose all its credibility among the common people. Awarding a superstar actor just because his film was shot in Malacca is hardly the proper reason or excuse to confer such a highly respected title.

Those who actually agreed to SRK's Datukship are on the notion that it promoted Malacca and our country to the world. If that is the case, why don't we confer a Datukship to Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta Jones too, who shot Entrapment against the backdrop of KLCC? Why not award a 'Datuk' title to every foreign artiste who comes to this land of ours to perform and promote our country to the world? We are in turn, making the title 'Datuk' the bud of people's joke and a mockery. This has damaging consequences especially to 'Datuks' who have really earned this title. We have to remain practical and sensible to say the very least. We cannot keep throwing this 'Datuk' title around to every Tom, Dick and Harry when those who have contributed so much to Malaysia are out of the loop. The likes of The Alleycats, who themselves have entertained us throughout the decades, and promoted our local music scene to various regions have had their warranted recognition and appreciation elude them, because we have chosen to award people like SRK. No offense to SRK, he is a fine actor and a great entertainer in his own right, but the fact remains that there are more than a handful of individuals in this country alone who deserve proper recognition for their contribution. We cannot choose to ignore really deserving Malaysians, and mindlessly start administering a high sense of recognition to foreigners, especially for a ridiculous reason such as the SRK case.

It is my sincere hope for this nation that we learn to prioritize and give recognition where it is due.We must learn to think before we act, and avoid senseless decisions such as awarding SRK with a 'Datukship'. We must all take this as a good lesson that we need to put our people first, think of own fellow countrymen before choosing to look abroad. The grass always looks greener on the other side because we fail to look at our own yard first.