Buang budaya selesa boleh lemahkan negara, kata Anwar

Perdana Menteri Anwar Ibrahim urged all parties to reject the culture of contentment during the 80th anniversary celebration of Telekom Malaysia Bhd in Cyberjaya today. He emphasized that Malaysia cannot succeed if it continues to maintain old customs; instead, the contentment culture needs to be eradicated immediately as it can weaken the nation.

A country may become weak or slow if such a culture is applied, stating that occasionally, a department or company loses 10 or 12 billion ringgit, yet people still deem it okay without a second thought. This culture that brings contentment and leads to decay must be challenged, as it is detrimental to the nation's progress. Younger generations need to be introduced to new knowledge and discipline in modern technology to ensure the country can keep up with the rapidly changing world.

Malaysia must move into a new era that is unprecedented and yet to be imagined for it to become wealthy, independent, and successful. This means that children and the new generation must receive new knowledge and discipline in various fields. Striving for the highest heights involves overcoming difficulties in the early stages. Malaysia has immense potential to continue progressing, but this potential can only be realized if all parties work together to achieve something better than what has already been achieved.

Anwar also praised TM for not only focusing on profit within the organization but also for addressing the welfare of employees. Once again, he emphasized TM's remarkable achievement, not just for Malaysia but for the region as well, as TM is renowned. He wants TM to be known not only for its impressive stature but also for its results, profits, technology, and innovations, but also for being a caring company towards the fate of employees and the community around it.

TM and MMU have shown readiness to welcome new developments in the multimedia and artificial intelligence fields, thereby proving the importance of local institutions and companies staying ahead in the face of future demands. Malaysia needs to focus not only on aspects of understanding but also ensure the nation has a culture of striving for excellence in all fields.

In this regard, Anwar stated, TM's progress must surpass its traditional role as a telecommunication service provider and also venture into strategic areas, including cyber security and future technologies.