'Unity begins with oneself' - Zubedy

The power to maintain harmony and unity in the country lies in the hands of all Malaysians, said social entrepreneur Anas Zubedy.

Fostering unity, he said, is a task that should begin at the personal level and not left to the government alone.

“Malaysians have yet to understand and believe the power we have in our hands. If we decide to become unity ambassadors, we should start first.

"Many Malaysians make the mistake to think unity is the job of the government agencies. Yes, we have the National Unity and Integration Department, but they act as facilitators. However, we must start from ourselves and not wait for others to become bridge builders and unity ambassadors,” Anas said during the launch of the #saysomethingnice 2014 campaign at Tropicana City Mall, Tuesday.

Anas, who is also author and director at Zubedy Sdn Bhd, founded the #saysomethingnice campaign in 2011 aimed at getting Malaysians to share nice and positive messages from August 31 until September 16 – the 17 days gap between Merdeka Day and Malaysia Day.

“There are elements out there aimed at making Hari Merdeka and Hari Malaysia to be in a competition. These are people who sees the country in a divisive manner. With this campaign, we want to show that both have a place in our hearts.”

The feel-good movement this year will go beyond just words to feature initiatives such as #selfiesomethingnice – whereby selfies collected will be used to form a Malaysian Unity map made out of the faces of diverse Malaysia; #collectsomethingnice- unused and pre-owned items in good condition to be collected and handed over to the needy and NGOs; and #servesomethingnice – volunteers to help the Kechara Soup Kitchens on Saturday nights, among others.

Meanwhile, schools, businesses and community organisations are also encouraged to put up the #saysomethingnice poster around the country to enable to Malaysians express their thanks and appreciation.

“We also want to start this campaign at the school and kindergarten levels. Imagine if we put up the #saysomethingnice poster at the schools and if they do it for 12 years in their lives, I believe the children will eventually see it as a very special day for Malaysia. It will definitely have an impact to the country” added Anas.

The campaign was launched by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Tan Sri Joseph Kurup.