The Case for More Holidays

As a multi-cultural nation, Malaysia has lots of public holidays. There have been calls by politicians and industrialists to reduce the number of such holidays so that Malaysians can be more “productive”. We need to work harder in order to compete with China and India, or so they say.

Unfortunately, as a working adult who studies MBA part-time, I can’t have enough holidays. I spend between 15 and 18 hours every week on my study. Those people who call for fewer holidays probably think that I am very lazy.

Do you still remember that, not too long ago, former Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir declared Saturday off for government officers? The move was immediately imitated by the bankers. Dr. Mahathir’s reason for more holidays was to boost domestic tourism.

Consider this hypothetical example:

An amateur photographer travels to every corner of the country during weekends and public holidays. He publishes a book to showcase his works. A European reads his book and finds Malaysia a beautiful country. He decides to spend his winter holidays in this tropical country with his family…

So, is the amateur photographer unproductive?

We can’t compete with China and India on hard work and wages, so we need to compete on ideas. The government, rather than reducing the number of public holidays, should encourage the people to engage in activities that are beneficial and productive.

One thing you can do during the holidays is to be a voluntary social worker...