A mansion

Suppose there were 4 friends; Ali, Chong, Guna and Joe. They decided to settle down and have a home where they can each raise a family. But then they realized that they could not have 4 houses for every man because Ali had nothing but a piece of land, only Chong had the money and only Guna knew how to design a house. Plus, Joe was the only person who knew how to lay bricks.
Without much deliberation Ali, Chong, Guna and Joe decided that they would build a massive mansion and live together. Ali was to provide the land for the building, Chong was to take care of the finances, Guna was to be in charge of designing while Joe volunteered to provide manual labour.
Many months past and much to their excitement, the mansion was completed. And of course, they moved in and each man occupied an equally sized room big enough to raise a family. Ali, Chong, Guna and Joe were proud of their achievement and looked forward to many years as house mates.

Then came a time when Ali, Chong, Guna and Joe grew old and died, leaving behind their children to inherit the mansion. Unfortunately, dissent started to take root amongst the children of the 4 men.
Ali's children thought to themselves,"Our father owned the land this mansion is sitting on. Therefore we own this mansion!" Hence, they plotted to drive the rest of the occupants out of the mansion.
Chong's children then said, "Our father provided the money for the construction of this mansion. Without the finances, this would just be a wasteland. Hence, we own this land!". So, they too harboured the intention to be the sole owners of the mansion.
Guna's children also exclaimed, "Our father was the only one with the knowledge of construction. Without him, there would not be a roof over your heads. This mansion is ours!". They too wanted the mansion for themselves.
Joe's children then responded, "Our father built this mansion with his hands and sweat. Without him, there would be no mansion today. We own this building, not you people!".
All these bickering did not stop for next few years. It became so bad that the children of the 4 men refused to speak with one another. As a result, they only stayed in their respective rooms.

One day, a fire broke out in the living room and thick smoke engulfed the entire house. Ali's children said to themselves, "The fire is in the living room and not in ours. Let the others extinguish the fire!"
Chong's children then replied, "The fire is not our problem. It is closer to your rooms. You guys handle it. We shall stay in here." They could not care less for the impending inferno ready to consume the mansion.
Guna's children in response, hollered, "It's just a small fire. There's nothing to worry about!". So they went back to what they were doing.
Joe's children then shouted back, "Our room is the farthest away from the fire. It will not reach us. So it's your responsibility, not ours!"

The fire then consumed the mansion and everyone in it.

Fellow Malaysians, we are going to celebrate 51 years of Merdeka soon enough. Are we just going to save our little 'rooms' but let the whole mansion burn to ashes?

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