DAP election strategist Ong Kian Ming made good sense in his recent call on his party to be more “mindful of the feelings of the Malays” and to “stop doing things that offend them” if it intends to win Malay votes in the next general election.

It cannot be denied that DAP needs the Malay-majority vote in order to come into power.

However, one wonders just how far the DAP will go to avoid doing or saying things that offend the Malays, especially when some of them are hypersensitive to the point of irrationality.

Need anyone be reminded of the brouhaha over the crosses on roofs in Langkawi, for instance?

Just as Malays, as well as other Malaysians, are hypersensitive about religion, they are equally hypersensitive about race. People seem to think that only someone of their own race can understand their plight and protect their rights.

This hypersensitivity exists at all levels, whether in the general population or in the top tiers of government. Any kind of criticism directed at the government, even if it’s valid and constructive, is met with defensiveness and sometimes even claims that the public isn’t grateful for efforts on their behalf.

DAP may not be the reason why hypersensitive Malays exist, but it is part of a political system that perpetuates and worsens the situation. This reality persists because political parties pander to this hypersensitivity. But it is also a testimony to democracy’s weaknesses.

Democracy is flawed in a sense because elections are a numbers game. Quantity is prioritised over quality. The best policies don’t always garner the most support, and the policies that garner the most support are not always the best.

So the question is this: once a political party has the quantity of voters to put it into power, will it then work on the quality of its leadership and policies? Or will it allow this hypersensitivity to get in the way of true development?

After all, hypersensitivity is rooted in insecurity. How can the country progress if a significant portion of society is always worried that any advantage given to other races or religions translates into a threat to its position? How can development be encouraged when people think that policies are zero-sum games, that one demographic can do well only at the expense of others?

And if DAP captures the Malay vote and must continue running this broken system to maintain its incumbency, how then can it be the party for all Malaysians, as it claims to be?

It goes without saying that political parties should not be intentionally offensive to any group. Or is it only the right of the Malays to have their feelings protected? Are the feelings of other races not as important because they don’t constitute the majority of voters?

The fault with this hypersensitivity doesn’t lie with political parties alone, of course. The Malays who show this hypersensitive streak are just as guilty. They take advantage of the fact that politicians will follow their whims because they constitute the majority, and they use the idea of Malay rights under the law to protect irrational causes.

For them, the understanding of rights becomes conflated with privileges. Yes, Malays do have the right to practice freedom of speech and religion. But they do not have the privilege of overriding the liberties of others under the banner of sensitivity. Protecting Malay rights should not come at the expense of other people and vice-versa.

Unfortunately, however, this epidemic seems like it is here to stay. As evident in the recent Umno general assembly, the insecurities of the Malays are only being encouraged through fear mongering.

And things probably won’t change if the Opposition comes into power either, since it too has decided to tiptoe around the feelings of the Malays to garner more votes.

So the big question is this: if both Barisan National and the Opposition have adopted this tactic and are continuing to run on racial support, how are they different from each other? And will a sensible plan to put the country on the road to positive change ever be implemented?