Datuk Kadir Jasin on "Pulling Malaysian Equity Back"

"Mohd Najib must also ensure that non-Bumiputera companies that benefit from his liberalization policies increase their Bumiputera employment meaningfully - not limiting to employing Bumiputera as drivers, bodyguards, tea ladies, dispatch riders, sales persons and guest relations officers as they often do today."

"If Mohd Najib and his Cabinet saw it fit to form a Royal Commission in response to the death of one Chinese political operator, I see no harm in them ordering the Economic Planning Unit or the Manpower Department to do a comprehensive census of Bumiputera employment in non-Bumiputera and non-GLC companies. The results may not reflect the Prime Minister's 1Malaysia lofty ideals."

"BN leaders must have the courage to acknowledge and restate that the BN is a coalition of parties representing the various Malaysian races and ethnic groups, and frame its policies and programmes accordingly."

"There is a world of difference between the various Malaysian races making demands through their race-based parties and outright racism."

"But lately, the BN parties are being cowed by the Pakatan Rakyat to treat such demands as racist, while the PR parties themselves are not beyong stoking racial sentiments."


>> Thinking about those "multinationals" in the country with employees conducting meetings in Mandarin whilst presence of non-Mandarin speaking colleagues, discriminating employment criteria. If MCA opines that liberalization would enhance economic activity, would that change the status quo of cartels running major businesses in the country, both legit and vice?

On Hudud (again)

Had an open discussion on facebook recently on race-based politics. The premise of the debate was to discuss whether race-based politics was the main ingredient of the declining support for BN. I begged to differ as both sides were equally 'guilty' to some degree of advocating race-based politics, which is not something treachery or destructive, it's just the nature of the landscape in our country.

Although PAS' islamic approach is noble, I really can't accept the rhetorics behind boycotting Western concert, depicted to be "maksiat" or evil. It's no different than our "Jom Heboh" concert or watching MTV, HBO. No consistency there in their stand. We know they got a big bashing from DAP on Hudud, and they retracted the stance soon after.

On Penang development under Gerakan for 18 years vs how DAP is running it now, well, I do not have enough data to make any convinction, but it may seem that people are saying DAP is doing a better job. Guan Eng perhaps is trying to leave the shadows of his father who seems to be more extreme in his approach. Is it really UMNO's fault if Gerakan lost control of the island?

On a different note, YB Eli has accepted the offer to continue working. I think that's acceptable seeing that it's actually a blatant invasion of privacy. What if photos of a leader caught in the act of sodomy were released, hypothetically? Would it be an invasion of privacy or do you think resignation is in order? During Genghis Khan's reign, sodomy was punishable by death.

The Malaysian Indians Rejecting Both Sides

From the last General Election in March, the Indians indicated that they have rejected the MIC leadership and rendered the component party incompetent of championing the rights of the Indians in Malaysia. As a result, the voters swung their support to Anwar's Pakatan Rakyat. Anwar must have promised them the world to gain their backing back in March.

Subsequently, Hindraf was born. Hindraf sparked numerous controversies including its allegation of genocide in Malaysia and disrupting the Prime Minister's Hari Raya open house. The latter caused a big stir among the majority Muslims as insulting and disrespectful. Despite all the oppression and alleged genocide, somehow the leadership of Hindraf was spared, having become a fraternity of rich and well to do lawyers in this country. Certain groupings in the Bar Council are testament to that fact.

Meanwhile, in Barisan Nasional, both PPP and MIC leaders lost their bids in their respective Parliamentary election in March. Kayveas of PPP since then has become a strong critic of the government, especially on the controversial but necessary Internal Security Act. Despite his effort to show that he is still fighting tooth and nail for some cause, he has been urged to step down by party members. The same could be said about Samy Vellu. Ever since the destruction of MIC in the last election, the pressure has been mounting to get the incumbent President for the last 2 decades to pass the baton to the next in line.

Dato' Nalla left Pakatan Rakyat and formed his own party, the Malaysian Indian United Party. Dubbed as Anwar Ibrahim's right hand man, he had left Pakatan due to his lost of confidence in the de facto PKR leader. He boasted a strong 10,000 membership in MIUP. Dato' Nalla was also seen with Barisan Nasional machinery during the Permatang Pauh by-election.

Kapar MP Manikavasagam relinquished his post in Pakatan Rakyat over his claims of Pakatan Rakyat being insensitive to the Indians. Recently, the Indians in Pakatan Rakyat claimed they have little stake in the coalition and also gave Anwar Ibrahim an ultimatum to resolve their issues or face further action from them. Anwar must be a political demigod if he could indeed magically cure this ailing before getting more heat from the Indians. Kulasegaran was unhappy with Anwar's promise for the post of Ipoh Deputy Mayor but later was only given a post as Councillor. He recently gave up his post in the Council.

Where would the Indian votes go to then for the next general election?

Extensive Work Ahead

1. Come March 2009, there will be a long list of to-do items for all newly elected UMNO leaders. The newly elected President of UMNO has a mammoth task to commence reparation of the party and the coalition if it has not begun.

2. The deadline will be the next general election, set to have more than 60% of voters below the age of 40. The young professionals in Wilayah Persekutuan have unanimously rejected Barisan Nasional. Barisan Nasional also lost the wealthiest state in Malaysia, Selangor. Pakatan's biggest advantage was figuring out how to krazy glue a loose coalition and make it work. DSAI played a crucial role to marry both PAS and DAP. This will be their Achilles' Heel, hands down.

3. It might not be half-bad to consider courting PAS. Not only it strengthens the coalition by increasing the number of Malay votes, but it solidifies BN's position in Kedah and Terengganu. Not only that, Kelantan will be under BN's belt for the first time in 23 years come 2013. In the spirit of coalition, a few federal portfolios should be given to PAS.

4. In ensuring strong racial tolerance and integration, the idea of streamlining our education system must be forwarded. The National Service for our kids at age 17 might be an acceptable module for motivational purposes, but would fail miserably if our kids have been exposed to systematic segregation in their early age. The idea of a one-race party system is acceptable but not at this moment when the house is not in order.

5. UMNO must continue to champion the Malay rights as enshrined in the Constitution and guard the tradition of the Malays. Concurrently, UMNO must ensure that the rights of Malaysians are not in jeopardy and not taken for granted.

6. Membership process must be revamped to attract talent into the party. The idea by Gerakan is not quite practical. Online registration of individual parties should be studied and implemented in the best manner possible.

7. Scores of post-mortems were conducted post-election to dissect the cause of the losses in several states. The findings must be executed to ensure a stronger win in the next general election. The Youth Chief and the young ones must play a bigger role to attract the young voters and understand their wants and needs.

8. UMNO and Barisan Nasional must also be prepared for an all-out PR exercise to counter blogs, internet media and video streaming sites. They fumbled for taking this lightly in the last election.

ps: on a different note, I respect Cheras Division Chief's initiative for creating the funds for Azan and in defence of Utusan Melayu. Clearly Pakatan's push for freedom of speech has been negated by this act by one MP.

BN labelled racist?

Race-based parties perpetuate racism. Some may prefer to call this phenomenon racialism. But, what is the difference?

It is, therefore, the height of irony that the Barisan Nasional government should now choose to be a proponent of a Race Relations Act. If such a piece of legislation is truly intended to eliminate racism from the Malaysian community, it should outlaw any race-based political parties and organisations. Only then can we see the Malaysian community that is sensitised to racism.

My reply> if BN is to be blamed for racism, the structure of Pakatan should also be scrutinized especially its rogue semi-political organization Hindraf. How does one fathom ethnic cleansing in this relatively peaceful nation? DAP reeks of chinese domination while PAS and PKR are still dominantly Malays. Of course the multi-racial memberships of DAP and PAS can be credited as being 'Malaysian', same with UMNO and its Sabahan counterparts. The ultimate power and influence in the party is another issue. The National Front structure provides the solution for a 'Malaysian' identity. Agreed that it has lost ground in support but that's a different causality. There is nothing wrong with racial identification, that is what defines culture. Tolerance is what's lacking in our society. Freedom of speech and openness are also over-rated.

Let's see Anwar reshape the political landscape by 'integrating' all components of Pakatan Rakyat into one viable and cohesive Malaysian party. It's also the party members democratic rights to determine what the majority wants. So if the component parties are affiliated to racism, therefore we could conclude their members are. Because BN won majority yet again, therefore majority of Malaysians are racist? Funny how democracy works.

>> Update 1: Doesn't help Pakatan's political image right now with Kok and Tan Seng Giaw petitioning against the allegedly loud Azan. Ronnie Liu's incompetence in preventing another temple demolition is also a disgrace especially when it was the same ammunition used against Barisan in the last election.

I was told that the temple was built without permit and that is subject of another discussion.

Let's see Anwar abolish the so-called draconian act of parliament the ISA. Let's see him dismantle the New Economic Policy and create meritocracy if and when Pakatan wins the next election. He could call it Sept 16 agenda.

Abolishing ISA, Malay Rights and Other Things That People Blame The Government For

Opposition and supporters are harping the same tunes. Abolish the ISA, Malaysians for Malaysia, BN is racist, Government is corrupt and abusive with its power. If the government is corrupt, guess who was Finance Minister in 1997 who almost tethered us with new economic masters in the form of IMF. It's always easy to blame the system and blame the leaders. Credits to Pakatan Rakyat for an extraordinary PR exercise pre-election with blogs and internet campaigns, discrediting the keris, etc. BN didn't know what hit them and it should be a lesson to our leaders that credibility and accountability must again be virtues held high up.

Because of the state of openness and somewhat freedom of speech, questions are being hurled about the NEP, Malay rights, ISA and even the Azan. While the NEP is a double-edged sword, we have to admit that a significant amount of people benefited from this, not just the Malays. Of course, some people would choose to keep a closed eye on that and the numbers. There are also Malays who have milked infinite riches from the special rights and now condemn the policy and its failure.

The Special Position of the Malays in the Constitution could be a poison also, especially for those who choose to take the path of least resistance and sell their precious contracts back to the Chinese. We all know that. As suggested by a senior Minister earlier, if we are ready to amend the Special Rights, only Parliament has the legal right to do so and that would reflect the will of the majority. Even the US has affirmative actions in their education system to ensure that a healthy percentage of non-Caucasians are admitted into universities because of their demographic disadvantages. The SAT is blamed to be biased for educated white folks and does huge injustice to the Latin and African Americans who were deprived of better education at an early age.

There is no doubt BN is in need of restructuring and major overhaul. We are seeing it transpire. Pakatan should just stop nitpicking and run their 5 states to prove to the people that they are worthy. I don't see much difference anyway. Wasn't a temple demolished under their watch in Ampang? It's easy to condemn - try doing it yourself.

My Reply to Jaredsdad> Hi, I hope you're doing your part not just as voter but a concerned individual to realize that not only race-based politics is real and alive in BN but also in Pakatan Rakyat. What does that say about both sides? I hope you're going down to the ground and listening out to grass root people. It's always comfortable to sit in our chairs and blog and whine about how racist certain individuals are and how corrupt the Government is and why you deserve more subsidies for petrol because we are an oil exporter, etc etc. If you're doing your part, that's great. At least you could appreciate the uphill battle.

On ISA and many other rules of the land, some are justified and some questionable. However, it is still an act passed in Parliament and only Parliament can decide to amend or suppress it. That is the essence of democracy, whether fair or not to some individuals. It is the will of the majority. Why hasn't Pakatan passed the motion in Parliament to amend or throw it out the window?

If BN is labelled as racist and they've been winning elections under the leadership of Tun Dr Mahathir for decades, then you are safely concluding that majority of Malaysians are racist.
There is nothing wrong with being proud of one's race. It is our identity. To be acknowledged as a Malaysian is also an identity (although identity these days is quite questionable seeing the massive fan base of English Premier League in Malaysia considering there's no real affiliation to the teams or the nationalities who represent the teams). Doesn't mean we throw out the keris or the sari.

Tolerance is the path to unity

I refer to the letter written by Nga Ko-Lyn from Sitiawan, Perak on “Path To True Unity” published on 5th September. If the author is adamant to blame racial politics on the power structure of Barisan Nasional, the author should also examine the racial structure in Pakatan Rakyat where DAP is predominantly Chinese and both PKR and PAS are strongly Malay-based.

Malaysians of all walks of life know the global boundaries have disappeared. However, it doesn’t mean free trade is fair to small and under developed countries. It doesn’t mean the US will not charge tariffs on imported steel from Japan if it means having 180,000 Americans out of job in Pittsburgh. Globalization is widely accepted to many but is also scrutinized and regulated.

Ko-Lyn also said that “the European Union is a force to reckon with”, failing to recognize that the British have failed to increase their economy. The Organization for Economic Co-Operation (OECD) predicted the UK to be in recession by end of the year, shrinking by 0.4% by year end. The European Union system heavily subsidizes the unemployed and it encourages more people to be out of job. In 2002, the combined unemployment rate of EU was at a staggering 8%. The taxation is high at 40% and more Europeans are flooding the Asian job market because of the high salary and low taxation from local governments. The North Sea sector has probably hit oil peak and industrial leaders are eyeing elsewhere for investments. The EU alone imports 82% of its oil for consumption. China is already the market leader in manufacturing (manufacturing 6.5million cars last year with 120 car makers in the country) and India in IT. Google, Microsoft, Coke and other major global brands are investing heavily in Asia, not Europe. He should recognize that Asia is “The” force to be reckoned with, not Europe. I do agree that our politicians should just govern, instead of being embroiled in local politics, before Vietnam surpasses our GDP. The general election has been over for 6 months.

Ko-Lyn also said that “the only way to absolute and true unity is when we stop thinking as different races”. There is no demerit thinking as different races. This is the basis of cultures and cultures are what identify people with a sense of belonging. The Malays are proud to brandish the keris, not just during political assemblies but as part of the uniform and a symbol of the Malay culture, likewise the Chinese with their mighty Lion Dance. America has been independent for more than a century, yet the non-Caucasians are still categorized as Latin Americans, African Americans and Asian Americans. Tolerance is still king and will continue to play the most important racial in racial unity and ‘integration’. In the end, we are all Malaysians with the same passport and identification cards.

On education, if Ko-Lyn thinks that “policies prevent many of our smart students from completing their education in a higher institution”, what about primary and secondary schools? If he is such an advocate of unity, he should be advocating a streamlined system, instead of having SRJK Cina and Tamil. That to me is the root cause of the intolerance we have today. He should also study the education system at institutions such as the Royal Military College, where the military system has been found successful in promoting tolerance and integration in the multi-racial environment. RMC was deemed an important element in nation building after Independence to churn future leaders in the military and public sector, so important that even the then Prime Minister chaired the Board of Governors meetings.

Malaysia for Malaysians & The Special Rights of the Malays

I had an interesting discussion with a government officer today about the relevance of race-based politics and the Special Position of the Malays in the Constitution. Here is what Tun Dr Ismail said according to a book written by Ooi Kee Beng:

"I regard the special position of the Malays as a handicap given to the Malays with the consent of all the other races who have become citizens of this country so as to enable the Malays to compete on equal footing for equal opportunities in this country. That and that alone is the only aim of the Special Position of the Malays. But unfortunately the Malays themselves have tended to give the impression consciously or unconsciously that the Special Position of the Malays is a sign that the Malays are placed superior to the other races in the country. The biggest mistake that the Malays made of course was to coin the term "Bumiputra" because this term tended to convey an entirely different meaning to what was intended for the Special Position of the Malays. By coining "Bumiputra" the non-Malays suspected the Malays of wanting to classify themselves as first-class citizens while they were relegated to second-class (Letters 23 February 1970)".

"An UMNO man complained at a meeting that despite Malay rights, the Malaysian contingent preparing for the Munich Olympics was made up mainly of Chinese. "Where are Malay rights there?" he asked. No one knew what to say, and it fell on Ismail to answer: "Special rights are only in the field of economics, not in sports," he ventured. "Do you mean to say we should use strings to make Malays good at high jump?" At that he burst out laughing. That was one of the few times I saw him laugh so heartily (Interview with Tun Ghafar 16 Oct 2005)".

I argued that the dynamics of Malaysian politics have slightly shifted into a new direction since the last election. Race-based politics may or may not be relevant, if it's not relevant, it's a matter of time. Like-wise, if the other races want equality, all should compromise. If not, it is a big stale mate. I think we are seeing the start of the transition in the cities. It would be a long time until the rural folks would start thinking about it. Having said that, I still think that our country will remain a country with Islam as its official religion and the king is recognized as the Head of State. As long as that remains, the Malays will be in a slightly "privileged" position. That's just an opinion.

He also argued that we were never invaded by the Brits; we were merely consulted on administrative advice. The word he used was 'jajah' (conquer) and that the Brits never conquered us. I said, if you were right, somebody needs to change our history books and what we're teaching our kids.

For those who are second-guessing me, this is my stand: The Special Rights are there to allow the Malays to compete on a level-playing field. When that day happens, i.e. Malay has 55% of the economic pie (the term economic pie is also subject to discussion), the handicap should be removed, like the game of golf.

Only UMNO has the weight to change

Heavy discussions are ongoing among my peers as to what the way forward would like. Some argued about the relevance of racial-based politics, some argued about fundamentals, some argued about broader pictures the likes of education and social obligations.

Where do we move and how do we move? "Where" is the toughest question to answer first. Do we intend to have a true racial integration or will we still play racial cards? If we are headed to a true racial integration, what is the relevance of UMNO, MIC, MCA, DAP, Gerakan, Malay College Kuala Kangsar, MRSM, UNITAR, Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan, Utusan Melayu, Article 153? Or are we just heading to a place where everyone is a Malaysian, neither is a Malay, nor a Chinese nor an Indian, but yes we need to keep institutions such as the chinese chambers of commerce to protect certain interests and Dewan Melayu, for example. There has to be some level of compromise. In the end, democracy shall prevail and we will get the voice of the majority.

Let's assume now that we have the "Malaysian" agenda as our primary objective. What vehicle shall we use? BN is still regarded as racial-based even though it represents the different races. PR is similar. Youngsters in this era of facebook and youtube are rebellious and craving for a change in the political landscape, consistent with "darah muda" (young blood). Parliament is a joke judging from the level of intelligence among MPs (in general and in public's perception) and the intensity and quality of discussion (there are exceptional members of Parliament whom I still highly regard).

I reckon people will also flip flop their choice of political affiliation based on the choice of the candidates, the political struggle and the current "trend", with the exception of hard cores, i.e. don't think Johoreans will lean to the other side anytime soon, like wise people in Bukit Bintang or Batu Gajah for that matter.

Fundamental issues that we need to address:
1. Is raced based politics relevant? If it's not, how shall it be implemented? Will we get the backing of the majority? How do we streamline the school system? How do we integrate? I'm not interested with the obvious problems, I'm more keen to work out solutions. Perhaps our first goal, as my good friend suggested, is to frame this in a proper context and disseminate the information (will not get into details, this will be topic of offline discussions). Have to decide which platform to use. Can't just be idealists.

2. Should we move to a popular vote system? There are numerous inherent problems with the delegate system. It also creates opportunities for money politics. Perhaps we could coin something and present to the higher ups to consider (or wait for one of our direct contacts to become President and amend the party constitution). Having said that, I still think parties like UMNO have great influence. It's a matter of selling the point. We can't negate the fact that it's still an influential party.

3. Integrate all wings into one party. There should be no youth, wanita, puteri. All should be treated as equals, seniors and wise men should be respected, youth should be heard. In the end, it's back to our cardinal beliefs in "Kesopanan dan Kesusilaan".

4. Education: Need to streamline education into ONE system if everyone's hyped about racial integration. Segregation is almost unbelievable especially at local universities.

5. Economics: Where do we see ourselves beyond our thin oil reserves? What is our second engine of growth and is it strong enough to face global challenges?

............... there are more blanks to be filled. Let's move forward. We either hope our current leaders will implement or stay in the game long enough to implement it. No use sitting at the sidelines.

I am a PROUD member of UMNO and a product of the NDP. Unfortunately, this is what UMNO Youth in Putrajaya are talking about. You guys decide how we move forward (and please, no demonstrations recommended).

Putrajaya Kini

"Nampaknya modal si khairun berkempen semakin meningkat........kini pemuda-pemuda dibawa ke palm garden pulak.......makan jgn tak makan..........jgn tak habis makan sudah.....nanti Allah marah kalau membazir........Apa-apa pun syabas khairun kerana masih kekalkan momentum kempen di hotel-hotel.........Ye la kalau hotel lebih selesa dari kedai mamak atau kelab tasik atau tomyam dengkil, tomyam bangi..........Ada masalah?..........Tak ada..........Cuma seronok tengok cara kempen org2 yg nak bertanding......moga-moga murah rezeki sebab banyak bagi pemuda makan....tapi jgn la sampai jadi gemuk macam amri atau rozi.."

Anti Wayang Putrajaya

"ASSALAMUALAIKUM WARGA PEMUDA,
DUA ISTILAH IAITU MENGENANG BUDI ATAU MENGAMPU....KITA BERBAIK DGN BOS, ADAKAH KITA MENGENANG BUDI ATAU KITA SENGAJA NK BODEK?????? CONTOH DR PEMUDA KITA BOLEH LIHAT AMRI DIA NI TERGOLONG DR YG MANA SATU....MENGENANG BUDI ATAU MENGAMPU?????? AZIZ HALIM MENGENANG BUDI ATAU MENGAMPU...AMIR MENGENANG BUDI ATAU MENGAMPU YG TAHU HANYA DIA DAN ALLAH SAHAJA....JAWAB JGN X JAWAB..."

My Pemuda

"Salam hormat pemuda Putrajaya. Semoga semua sejahtera dalam keadaan poket tenat dek kenaikan harga barang... Tadi aku bersama 7 orang ahli pemuda cawangan dijemput bersua dengan Khairun calon Ketua Pemuda Putrajaya. Sahabat-sahabat yang lain tidak dapat turut serta. Sepatutnya dengan Zaki dulu iaitu pada 18 Jun 2008 yang lepas aku telah set dengan Amri, tapi sampai jam 2 petang hari tersebut tiada seorang kempen manager Zaki yang cal aku. So aku sms semula kepada semua pemuda cawangan bahawa perjumpaan yang dicadangkan dibatalkan."