Written by YAM Tunku Zain Al-‘Abidin ibni Tuanku Muhriz, Founding President of the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS).

I WAS delighted to be able to join the retreat of the Ideas Autism Centre team in Melaka recently. Sometimes, these company getaways can seem superficial – a big checkbox for directors, managers and executives alike to show that they care about team building, welfare and spending the allocated budget – but this one was truly purposeful and heartfelt.

In recognising staff who have been serving for a decade or more, it served as a reminder of the growth of the entire project, borne out of a piece of research about providing therapy and education to some of the most disadvantaged people in our society – children on the autism spectrum from B40 families.

With hundreds of children’s lives transformed for the better, the people of the Ideas Autism Centre continue to work hard to work with families, corporates and the government to uplift this amazing community.

With three branches now – in Rawang, Nilai and Port Dickson – the gathering enabled us to better strategise not just team cooperation, but joint events for the children as well.

At one of my more corporate outfits, there has been a leadership transition, and at such times the importance of having strong bonds among colleagues becomes unmistakably clear.

There is often a critical period where there are rumours about resignations, replacements, disagreements amongst directors or shareholders and so on, sparking concern that may prompt others to leave as well.

Thankfully, when there is a high level of trust between board and management, such turbulence can be successfully ridden out, and the company can achieve a renewed sense of purpose when the new chief executive signs the employment contract.

At a session with one of the chambers of commerce of a European country, I was asked about the level of cohesiveness within Malaysian political parties.

Thankfully, I knew something about that country’s history and politics, and could point out that individual self-interest, whether within the same or across opposing political parties, often emerges as the prime motivator for politicians anywhere in the world and at any point in history.

And so, individuals switching allegiance to a different party within the same coalition, personalities condemning their party colleagues for exaggerating certain issues (being selective about race while doing so) or leaders failing to punish problematic individuals just because they are politically useful – all these are phenomena which the Malaysian public need to tolerate, while hoping that beneficial policies actually get designed and executed as the politicians clamber over one another while ascending the greasy pole.

Even among that dirty profession there are bright spots though.

Increasingly I see backbench MPs from different sides working productively and intelligently towards common policy and legislative goals regarding children, refugees or even political financing.

However, when there is a particularly significant incident that catches national attention, such as the tragic death of teenage student Zara Qairina Mahathir at a religious boarding school in Sabah and the circumstances leading up to it, full of speculation but certainly involving weaknesses in processes and a pathetic response by the Education Ministry, politicians cannot resist sliding back into hyperbole, with accusations against leaders bandied about on social media and lawsuits ensuing.

I hope that in the matter of addressing bullying in our schools, political parties actively reach out to civil society organisations who have worked in education and with children, with expertise in mental health and programmes that have been proven to foster cohesion.

In this and indeed all areas of public policy, we need to expand and solidify the ecosystem so that deliberate and toxic disruption to public policymaking is minimised.

Political point scoring must not continue to be rewarded; rather, effective policymaking should be.

Team building within civil society organisations is important, too, especially for a young and dynamic team in which some people enter and leave, pursue other careers and maybe come back.

Transience and permanence of people have existed side-by-side for years at the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (Ideas) and so I was happy to join the second edition of the badminton tournament.

Complete with group and knockout stages, thoughtful pairings and seedings, the researchers and administrators of the think tank were joined by the teachers and therapists of the Ideas Autism Centre for a day of enjoyable competitiveness.

Sadly I did not repeat the achievement of a bronze medal, but my partner and I – an intern destined for a management consultancy – won the Best Doubles Partner Award. Apparently we high-fived a lot.

With the annual extended fortnight of celebrations between Merdeka and Malaysia Day coming up, it’s an apt time for us as Malaysians to think of team building not just as a company or organisational project, but a national one too.

This article was featured in The Start, 22 August 2025

The views expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views or positions of IDEAS Malaysia. All opinions are the author’s own.