21/08/2025

THURSDAY | AUG 21, 2025

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No freedom while people go hungry T HIS Merdeka, Malaysia celebrates 68 years of independence. There will be parades, speeches and hashtags about unity and for years and one thing I have often heard is: “You climate people speak from a place of privilege. The worsened by climate disasters. We cannot wave the flag proudly if we remain silent about the rural poor, urban poor and the invisible millions who suffer in silence. M A T E V O I

poor don’t have time for climate change; they are too busy trying to survive.” Now, I understand. I have seen it, and in a way it is true. Not because they don’t care; they do, but when tomorrow’s meal is uncertain, rising sea levels seem far away. When floods wipe out crops, it is not the wealthy who go hungry first. When droughts dry up wells, it is not urban elites who queue for water. Climate change hits the poorest the hardest and the earliest. This is not just an “India problem”. In Malaysia, I have met schoolchildren who eat only once a day; university students who skip meals, not to diet but so they can send their allowance home to parents who are already eating less; and close friends in public universities who ration their food because their families cannot afford electricity and groceries at the same time. This is 2025. And it is real. So, as we celebrate Merdeka, we need to understand that independence is not just about political sovereignty. True independence means freedom from hunger, thirst and from being forgotten. We cannot call ourselves free if our fellow Malaysians are still trapped in cycles of poverty, C E B A B A T H Y

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The fight for climate action is also the fight for social justice. You cannot separate the two. If we want to secure Malaysia’s future, we must protect both our environment and our people, especially those most at risk. The communities that contribute the least to climate change are often the first and worst to feel its impact through floods, crop failures and water shortages. Every time we delay climate action and ignore poverty, we are telling the most vulnerable Malaysians: “Your suffering can wait.” Merdeka is a promise that no citizen will be left behind. But that promise is broken every time a child goes to school hungry and every time a community’s water source runs dry. If you are reading this on a smartphone, comfortable in your home, you are already more privileged than millions. The question is, what will you do with that privilege? We cannot call ourselves truly independent until dignity is a right, not a privilege, for every Malaysian. Mogesh Sababathy is a youth climate advocate, National Consultative Panel member to the Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Ministry and PhD candidate at Universiti Putra Malaysia. Comments: letters@thesundaily.com

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progress. But as we raise our flags and sing Negaraku , I can’t help but ask: What does freedom really mean in 2025?

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A few months ago, during a visit to South India, I experienced a moment that left a mark on me. My family and I had brought food to share with students from a government-aided school in a remote village. The roads seemed to vanish as we travelled deeper inside. Children ran barefoot towards us at the temple, drawn not by curiosity but by the sight of food. Some wore torn uniforms, none had shoes, yet their smiles were radiant. When I asked the temple priest for plates, he calmly replied: “There’s a tree outside. Pluck some leaves.” And so, we served the food on leaves. These families live off their crops, rice and lentils, without clean water or proper toilets. They bathe using water from a government controlled pipe or gather at a public pond, afraid that their wells will run dry. They survive on so little, yet they smiled and thanked us. They were happy in ways that made me question everything I thought I knew about hardship and gratitude. I have been in climate advocacy

The fight for climate action is also the fight for social justice. You cannot separate the two. If we want to secure Malaysia’s future, we must protect both our environment and our people, especially those most at risk. – PIC COURTESY OF MOGESH SABABATHY

A grandfather’s Merdeka wish MY heart swelled with immeasurable joy when my daughter told me she was three months pregnant.

LETTERS letters@thesundaily.com

Helping students discover gaps in knowledge

politicians for self-gain and popularity, are also being used as tools for scams, bullying and the erosion of our social fabric. This is a holistic problem that requires a holistic solution. I recently heard about a neighbouring country where leaders actively encourage parents to limit screen time and early childhood educators have a strict “no screen time” policy for toddlers. Their focus is on the crucial first 1,000 days of a child’s life, emphasising real world bonding, physical play and resilience building. Their leaders advise parents to take their children out to the field, to let them run around, fall and stand back up. This is how they learn resilience, develop motor skills and build confidence. We, too, must shift our national conversation from petty politics to foundational well-being. Our children are not just watching screens; they are modelling our behaviour. We must lead by example. For a child under the age of 12, unsupervised access to digital devices can harm their psychological health and impede their development. Let us, as a nation, commit to ensuring that screen time is a supervised, shared activity, not a replacement for parental engagement. This Merdeka, let us make a powerful statement. Let’s redirect our focus from politicking to people and from empty rhetoric to tangible action. Let’s make “Malaysia Madani: Rakyat Disantuni” a reality by protecting our most vulnerable citizens – our children. My only wish for Merdeka is for a better Malaysia, built on the foundations of strong, resilient and connected families for generations to come. Chin Yew Sin Shah Alam

RECENTLY, I came across something called the Dunning-Kruger Effect. It is a psychological idea that explains how people with limited knowledge in a subject sometimes believe they know more than they actually do. This reminded me of something I often notice in primary school classrooms, especially during mathematics lessons. Some students are quick to answer, full of confidence and often the first to raise their hands. On the surface, they may seem to have mastered the topic but when asked to explain how they reached their answer, it sometimes becomes clear that their understanding is not solid. They may have memorised certain steps or copied a pattern but cannot explain why those steps work. The Dunning-Kruger Effect helps explain this. It suggests that when someone knows a little about something, they may not realise how much more there is to learn. Their confidence is high, not because they are trying to act clever but because they are not aware of their gaps. It is a natural part of learning but it can create problems if not addressed. One of the main concerns of this effect is that overconfidence can close the door to further learning. A student who believes they already understand a topic may stop listening, avoid asking questions and ignore corrections. This is especially common in subjects like mathematics, where getting the right answer can sometimes hide a weak understanding of the actual concept. In education, there is a useful idea called the zone of proximal development. It describes the space between what a student can do alone and what they can do with the help of more

knowledgeable others. Learning is most effective in this space, especially when students are supported by someone more knowledgeable, like a teacher or a peer. But students who think they know everything may not enter this learning zone. They feel no need for support. How can teachers help students move past false confidence? One approach is to ask students to explain their answers, not just write them down. When a student is encouraged to talk through their thinking, it becomes easier to see if they truly understand or are just guessing. Group activities can also help. When students share their methods with classmates, they are exposed to different ways of thinking and may start to notice their gaps. Using tools like number lines, blocks or fraction models can make abstract ideas more visible. These tools can help students understand that getting the right answer is not the end goal; understanding why the answer works is just as important. Finally, creating a classroom environment where it is safe to be wrong is key. Students need to feel that not knowing something is normal and that asking for help is a strength and not a weakness. In the end, confidence is valuable. But confidence that grows from reflection and real understanding is better than confidence that hides confusion. Helping students stay open, curious and willing to learn is one of the most powerful things a teacher can do.

However, this joy was quickly followed by a powerful sense of responsibility, not just for her but also for the world her child will inherit. As we celebrate another Merdeka Day, I find myself thinking about the true meaning of independence. It should not just be about political freedom; it must also be about securing a healthy future for our next generation. The theme for this year’s Merdeka, “Malaysia Madani: Rakyat Disantuni”, resonates deeply with me. It is a call to prioritise the welfare and well being of the people. And what could be more fundamental to our collective well-being than the health and development of our children? I see the silent threat everywhere. Just last week at my local coffee shop, a toddler’s cries were instantly silenced. The mother, looking frazzled, reached into her handbag, pulled out her smartphone and set it up with a cartoon. The crying stopped instantly. This common sight, where a glowing screen has replaced a parent’s voice and a shared storybook, is a convenient but dangerous pacifier. It is a habit we are blindly passing on to the next generation. This concern was so powerful that I immediately shared my fears with my daughter, reminding her to emulate a different couple I had recently seen. They were engaging their child with a storybook, not a device – a refreshing sight that showed me a better way is possible. My plea to our leaders and every Malaysian is this: let us be proactive in addressing the dangers of digital media. While we are distracted by political grandstanding and endless bickering over racial sentiments, our children’s minds are being shaped by an unregulated digital world. We must confront the reality that these same digital platforms, which are often abused by

Syed Azman Syed Ismail Postgraduate Student Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia