Malay Special Rights and the NEP

For those who are not clued-in as to what is the NEP, the NEP stands for New Economic Policy that was meant to put in place programs and policies to redistribute wealth so that the majority people which is the Malays will control and own the larger slice of the overall economic pie of Malaysia. Which I would think in a socialist perspective would be noble. However, the NEP has abused and used to oppress (for want of a better word) the non-Malays.

To my mind, as a Chinese Malaysian as I am so classified, the Malay Special Rights is to ensure non-discriminative actions in the legal, and commerce arena - to ensure that the Malay have a right to education, a right to conduct business, and access to public facilities and government representation, a right to worship and practice their religion.

All these are fine, until its used to oppress the rest. The BN government appears to have a ZERO sum thought on this. Take from the non-Malays and keep on taking, to the extent that I ask myself where's my right and my children's right. We are prevented from having Chinese Schools, we cant even use "Allah" in our Malay language bibles, places in local universities where a quota of maybe 5% is given to all non-Malays. No scholarships unless we go to our "Chinese" MP to beg for one.

But then when I look at the Malay Majority, when I go into their kampungs and I look at the standard of living. I can truly understand their hardships. They are poor, and their education level is low.

I can understand that their leaders from UMNO tell them that the non-Malays are taking all their rights and wealth, and they believe; simply because the average non-Malay makes more money then them. Perhaps is to question why?

I can only surmise in the grand scheme of things, the UMNO elites and ultras want the Malays to continue in their present condition and to keep them there. This will ensure that the need for "NEP" will always be there. With the NEP is a license and excuse for UMNO and its cronies to print money.

What I can say and advise our opposition politicians (if only if they care to read my blog) is to desconstruct the NEP and improve it. Why say Abolish the NEP? It has to be improved to ensure the wealth really gets to the Malay middle class and poor, not to the rich and wealthy. The rich dont need more help. We dont need more Zakarias and their palaces. The NEP should be expanded to be more inclusive we should include the non-Malays especially the poor and needy. We should add more transparency in dealings and accountability.

Promote meritocracy among the Malays, show them how to compete. Especially for places in Universities. It counter-productive to the Malays where everything is handed down a silver plater; the result is the local university graduates cannot compete in the real world and they end up working in the public sector, where the government having to create more jobs to absorb them. How long can these go on? In the age of globalization, they need to learn to compete on merit, if not they will be trapped in a 3rd world economy and a low standard of living. Its a catch 22 situation. To break the cycle, meritocracy must be introduced; NEP given transparency to ensure there's no abuse of the system for the rich to get richer.

I would challenge the Malays to think! You can't go on in the zero sum game, in the end the biggest losers will be the Malays. You might make the non-Malays suffer and live in a highly discriminated society. Its apartheid no matter how you picture it. You can't be asking us to leave the country if we don't like it. Just imagine, if the non-Malays really did a major exodus and leave the country. You the Malays will be left to your own devices, do you think the foreign investors will stay on? Do you all have the skill set the MNCs need? It will be a step backward into 3rd world economy for whats left of the country.

The NEP in its current form is a dirty word to the non-Malays, not because we are jealous and envious of the special priviledges. It is because it is used to discriminate the non-Malays and used as a devise to enriched the politically connected. The rich get richer, the poor gets poorer. This has to stop; indeed the Malays need an affirmative program to help them, in fact all middle-class and poor people irregardless of race needs the affirmative program to help them. If there's any discrimination needed, it would be the rich versus the poor. As the rich dont need any help; need I say more?

I rest my case.

Lets not underestimate the power of media blackout by the ruling coalition

Its just another 4 days to D-Day. Polls day for Malaysia. Interestingly most of the young urban folks that I have spoken to tend to be pro-opposition; on the hand, those that are pro-BN are folks that are not so "urban" those that are not expose to the new internet media.

The Chinese predominant concern continues to be, stable economy, better quality of life, cost of renewing leases on their property, education. They tend to be rather short-sighted going for "development" instead of ensuring their rights do not get railroaded. Much like how Esau sold his birthright for a bowl of soup (Genesis 25:29-34); did not value his birthright. And likewise, the Chinese sell their birthright for short term development, prosperity and stability. Do they not realize that when all their rights have been sold and when they have no more rights; whatever prosperity and development in their community will be taken away. Where can they run? Where can they hide? After all, the Chinese diaspora in Malaysia is already in their third generation or forth generation born in Malaysia, this is their homeland it is not China we can't go back to China even if we wanted to.

Perhaps the rich can immigrate to selected host countries, but where ever they go, they will still be second class citizens - "an new immigrant" to their new host countries; but majority will be left here with nowhere to go, left to rot, as second class "Dhimmis" if we allow the current BN government to quietly amend the constitution as times goes by and before we know it - we are an Islamic state; and if you're a non-Muslim you dont have the same rights. Here in Malaysia, the Chinese was one of the founding fathers of Malaysia; we fought for independence with the Malays, and Indians. We should have equal rights to be citizens of the country.

It saddens me that the Chinese are so short-sighted, and the MCA (Malaysian Chinese Association) who is suppose to be the protector of Chinese rights can stand meekly while the UMNO railroad and bullies everyone into submission and taking our rights away all the while being insensitive and arrogant. MCA of today is different from MCA of yesteryear; they have now become just lackeys or pets of the dominant party; their MPs dare not make a stand for justice and righteousness; all they are interested is in lining their pockets with money stolen from the citizens tax money.

As John Emerich Edward Dalberg Acton, first Baron Acton (1834–1902) said, "Power Corrupts; Absolute Power corrupts absolutely."

I hope the people open their eyes and see how corrupt this government has become, we are already seeing our rights being eroded. Politicians in power getting away with murder, ripping off the people's hard earn money by creating obscenely expensive projects that fails to deliver which yet need more money to complete.

And thus this is how effective is media blackout by the ruling coalition government. There is no freedom of press. Can this be changed? I only hope that the "aware" will tell the "unawares" of the sins of the present government. Its time they wakeup, and I hope its not too late.