Merdeka, Fear, and the Cost of Fixing the Wrong Problems

This year, as I drove through Kuala Lumpur during the month of August, I noticed something odd. Very few homes, shops, or even cars were flying the Jalur Gemilang. Normally, during the weeks leading up to Merdeka, our national flag is everywhere—fluttering proudly on Protons and Myvis, draped across buildings, lining neighbourhood streets. Yet this year, the silence of the flags was deafening.

At first, I thought patriotism is waning. Maybe people don’t feel the same pride in celebrating independence anymore. But then, I realised something deeper. People are afraid.

The Jalur Gemilang

The national flag of Malaysia, the Jalur Gemilang or "Stripes of Glory," was conceived as a powerful emblem of unity for a nation built on a foundation of diverse cultures, ethnicities, and histories. For decades, it has been a source of collective pride, flown with enthusiasm during the annual Bulan Kemerdekaan (Independence Month) leading up to National Day on August 31.

However, the period leading up to Malaysia's 68th Independence Day in 2025 witnessed a disturbing transformation of this unifying symbol. The Jalur Gemilang became the centre of a fractious culture war, where minor and often unintentional mistakes in its display were seized upon and amplified by political actors, turning an emblem of national cohesion into a catalyst for division and public anxiety. 

Viral images of improperly displayed flags led to witch-hunts, police reports, and vigilante-like protests, fundamentally altering the public's relationship with its own national symbol. Among the key incidents include the following: Sin Chew Daily misprint, SJKC Chung Hua Incident, Kepala Batas Hardware Store, Terengganu UMNO Youth Blunder and Pontian Dental Clinic – all in the past few months prior to Merdeka. Politicians have made the act of displaying the flag less about patriotism and more about compliance. 

A profound paradox has emerged, in which actions performed in the name of defending the flag's sanctity have actively undermined its core purpose. By weaponising the Jalur Gemilang to attack specific communities, these “actors” have incited inter-ethnic hatred and fostered a climate of fear that paradoxically suppresses genuine patriotic expression, leading many citizens to avoid flying the flag altogether to protect themselves from potential harassment and prosecution. The thinking among Malaysians has become this: Better not display it at all than risk punishment if I accidentally get it wrong.

As socio-political expert Professor Dr. Mohamad Tajuddin Mohamad Rasdi argued, those who harp on flag issues are often displaying a "false patriotism," acting as opportunists who are not genuinely interested in protecting the country but in exploiting symbols for political gain.

Read: Crisis Leadership Done the Right Way

A Climate of Fear

While the political motivations behind the flag controversies are clear, their societal consequences have been profound and overwhelmingly negative. The campaign of outrage has not fostered greater respect for the Jalur Gemilang; instead, it has created a pervasive climate of fear that is actively eroding the very patriotism it claims to defend.

The most significant impact has been the creation of a chilling effect on the public. Professor Tajuddin's personal testimony is a powerful articulation of this widespread sentiment. He expressed being "afraid and sad" to raise the flag, advising his family not to do so for fear that any unintentional error—a flag blown upside down by the wind, a minor tear, or potential sabotage—could be weaponized online by individuals with ill intent. This fear is not abstract, it is a rational response to seeing ordinary citizens like Mr. Pang arrested and businesses like the Pontian dental clinic forcibly closed over simple mistakes. The joy and spontaneity of celebrating National Day have been replaced by anxiety and a risk-assessment calculus.

This climate of fear has directly led to acts of self-censorship and civic disengagement. Prominent figures and ordinary citizens alike have publicly stated their decision not to fly the flag, a choice born not from a lack of patriotism but from a desire to avoid harassment, public shaming, or legal trouble. Former lawmaker Lee Hwa Beng announced on social media that he would not put up the flag for the first time in 21 years, fearing he could be called up for whatever reason. Another citizen echoed this, concluding it is now "better to lock up the flag" than risk an unintentional mistake for which no apology would be accepted. This phenomenon represents the atomization of a national celebration. What was once a collective, public act of unity has been transformed into a private, high-risk decision. The resulting visual decline in the number of flags being flown during Merdeka month is a stark symbol of a dampened and anxious national spirit.

And so, fear silenced celebration. This, to me, is a classic case of leaders. Whether in politics or business, fixing the wrong problem only creates a much bigger one.

The Cane Toads of Leadership

History is littered with examples of this. One of my favourites is the “toad problem” in Australia.

In the 1930s, sugar cane farmers in Queensland were struggling with beetles that ate their crops. Someone thought it would be a brilliant idea to import the cane toad from South America, which eats insects. Problem solved, right?

Except, cane toads don’t just eat beetles. They eat almost everything. Worse, they’re poisonous. Within a few decades, the population exploded from a few hundred to millions, devastating local wildlife. Crocodiles, snakes, even household pets died from eating them. In trying to solve the beetles, Australia created an ecological disaster still unsolved today. The lesson? Sometimes leaders focus so intently on a symptom that they unleash consequences far worse than the original issue.

When “Fixes” Break Cultures

The same thing happens in organisations.

I once worked with a company where employees weren’t filling in their time sheets on time. Management panicked. Instead of asking why people were disengaged, they instituted strict rules: miss a deadline, and your pay would be docked. Guess what happened? People complied, but morale plummeted. Soon, employees spent more energy “gaming the system” than doing meaningful work. Productivity nosedived.

It reminds me of Star Wars. Darth Vader, in his quest for efficiency, would choke his commanders to death when they failed him. What happened next? The next-in-line secretly sabotaged their own bosses so that they could move up. Instead of building loyalty, Vader built a culture of fear, mistrust, and backstabbing. Fear became the operating system of the Empire and innovation died.

Sound familiar? Many leaders today unintentionally create “Vader" cutures. They mistake fear for respect, compliance for commitment. In trying to “fix” underperformance or enforce discipline, they poison the very culture they hope to build.

Fear: The Silent Killer of Innovation

Fear never produces greatness. It produces silence.

When Malaysians became afraid of flying the flag, Merdeka lost its vibrancy. When employees are afraid of speaking up, companies lose their creativity. When children are afraid of failing, classrooms lose curiosity.

In fact, studies in organisational psychology show that psychological safety—the sense that you can speak up without fear of punishment—is one of the strongest predictors of high-performing teams. Google’s Project Aristotle, a massive study of its most successful teams, found psychological safety ranked even above technical expertise or IQ.

Yet, leaders often overlook this. They focus on the flagpole instead of the spirit of Merdeka, the timesheet instead of the reason for disengagement, the mistake instead of the lesson behind it.

Read: Beyond the Single Cause: Why Influential Leaders Embrace Complexity

Why Leaders Fix the Wrong Problems

Why does this happen so often?

1. Visibility bias: Leaders fix what they can see. A dirty flag, a late timesheet, a missed KPI. It’s easier to police surface-level problems than to confront deeper, systemic issues like culture, trust, or leadership.
2. Quick wins mentality: Politicians and managers alike love quick wins. Say, “We enforced discipline,” or, “We punished non-compliance.” But quick wins often come at the cost of long-term health.
3. Ego and fear of looking weak: Admitting “we don’t know the root cause” feels like failure. So instead, leaders act fast and act visibly. Unfortunately, haste makes waste.

In Malaysia’s case, instead of asking, how do we rekindle patriotism? How do we make Malaysians proud to display their flag? The focus shifted to how to punish those who do it wrong. And so, the cane toads of fear multiplied.

The Spirit of Merdeka

But Merdeka itself holds the answer.

Think of 1957. Did Tunku Abdul Rahman demand perfect flag etiquette before shouting “Merdeka” seven times at Stadium Merdeka? No. The flag was not a tool of punishment, but a symbol of unity, pride, and shared destiny.

True leadership is not about making people fearful of breaking rules, it is about inspiring them to rise together for something bigger. The same way Merdeka wasn’t just about independence from colonial rule, but about building a multiethnic, multicultural nation united in hope.

Flags don’t unite us. Fear doesn’t unite us. Vision does.

What Leaders Can Do Differently

So how do we, as leaders—in politics, business, schools, or families—avoid the trap of fixing the wrong problems and creating cultures of fear?

Here are some practices:

1. Focus on the root, not the leaf.

• Instead of punishing people for not flying the flag, ask why they feel disconnected from national pride.
• In companies, instead of obsessing over missed KPIs, ask why motivation is low. What’s driving disengagement

2. Build cultures of trust, not fear.

• Encourage open dialogue. Create safe spaces where employees (or citizens) can voice concerns without repercussion.
• Remember, silence is not agreement. It’s fear.

3. Think systemically.

• Every intervention has unintended consequences. Before acting, ask: What ripple effects could this create?
• In one of my roles in GE, we had a rule to always think two moves ahead. Fixing one problem is useless if it triggers five new ones.

5. Celebrate intent, not just execution.

• If someone flies a slightly tattered flag, celebrate the intent. Patriotism is about the heart, not technical perfection.
• In organisations, reward effort and learning, not just flawless outcomes.

6. Lead with inspiration, not intimidation.

• The leaders we remember—Mandela, Gandhi, Tunku—did not build cultures of fear. They built cultures of hope.
• Ask yourself, “Am I more like Tunku at Stadium Merdeka, or Darth Vader on the Death Star?”

A Personal Reflection

When I was at GE, one of the Aviation leaders I worked with used to say: “Roshan, never confuse compliance with commitment.” He told me a story about how he once enforced a small rule in his plant—something trivial, like how workers had to wear their name badges in a certain way. They complained, but he insisted, as it was how it was at that time (many years ago). But the morale in the plant dropped, absenteeism rose, and innovation slowed. He realised he had prioritised symbols over substance.

That stuck with me. It’s the same today. Flying a flag is not patriotism; living out the values of Merdeka is. Filling in a timesheet is not commitment; bringing your best self to work is.

Reclaiming Merdeka

So this Merdeka, maybe we shouldn’t just ask, where are the flags? Instead, we should ask, where is the spirit?

Do Malaysians feel proud, hopeful, united? Or do they feel fearful, disconnected, cynical?

The Jalur Gemilang should never be a symbol of fear. It should be a reminder of our shared struggle, our unity, our destiny as Malaysians. Similarly, in our companies, KPIs, policies, and rules should never become weapons of fear. They should be tools to enable growth, innovation, and unity.

Leaders, we must never forget that focusing on the wrong problems unleashes cane toads. When we rule with fear, we breed Darth Vader cultures. But when we inspire with vision, trust, and love—we spark Merdeka every day.

Final Thoughts

This Merdeka, may we not be remembered as leaders who silenced flags, but as leaders who lifted spirits. May we not build cultures of fear, but cultures of freedom. Because in the end, true independence is not just freedom from colonial rule. It is freedom from fear.

PS – I am so thrilled to see how the Badminton World Championships, where 2 of our pairs, women doubles, Pearly Tan-M.Thinaah, took silver after a great fight that touched every Malaysian heart and of course, our newly crowned mixed doubles world champions, Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei united the nation in celebration as they took glory and made the nation proud.
 

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