The Strength of the Malays, PAS co-operating with UMNO & of Biotech competition in the south

Had an intellectual chat with a senior OP whom I highly respect. When I was 17, he was actually the first person lecturing my peers and I about the history of the Malacca sultanate, the special rights of the Malays and that we should not be ashamed of having that constitutional provision. He also instilled a sense of nationalism in our head and continuously reminded us that we have the responsibility to the nation to serve to lead.

Fast forward to 11 years later, I still see the same spirit in him when talking about the present political landscape. We both agreed that the provision in Article 153 of the Constitution has been opened to abuse by people driven by greed and lust of power. He agreed that race-based politics was by design not intention, that the colonial masters had established the system in such a way that the basis of politics is racial background. I personally think that we would see this trend diminish in the urban areas.

On the sensitivities among the non-Malays about Article 153, he argued that the non-Malays should not feel threatened as long as the policy is administered well. The Malays should be the ones protecting not only their interests but also ensuring that the entitlement for others is not compromised (with power comes great responsibility).

Malays who have been offered scholarships and have completed their studies must fulfill their contractual obligations. Those who were offered loans and defaulted should be punished severely for abusing the privilege. Same goes with leaders who flaunt openly with their wealth and mansions. The decline of moral in leaders and the Malaysian citizens is apparent. The respect of law and order has also diminished extensively. Mat rempits should be taken off the streets and forced to conduct community service or be sent to jail for rehab or labor work (this would reduce the need for foreign workers by 5% in the construction industry).

We also talked about our alma mater and the merits of relocation. He did convince me that relocation made some sense. First of all, the buildings that we have were not meant to last long. The walls of the dormitories are made of asbestos and the whole structure is slowly falling apart. The relocation would enable us to build something more resilient and relevant to current times. This should be a permanent feature and we must ensure that the construction is solid to avoid another relocation in 50 years. It should reflect the greatness of RMC but not too much that it pampers the boys too much. I'm just worried about the close proximity of the power lines. The old buildings should remain in the hands of RMC, not NDU. Allocation should also be put aside for the International Baccalaureate program. MCKK and TKC are the other 2 schools intending to implement the same system within the next few years.

On the poor participation among the young ones to give back, he agreed that youths are typically highly-driven and energetic. They should focus their energies and ideas into actions and also listen to wise old men for advice.

Other news:

• PAS cannot be taken lightly. With 83 seats compared to DAP's 73 and PKR's 40, it is the actual backbone of PR with 2 states under its belt. Why is it consulting with UMNO? Another crack in the coalition? Even Selangor PAS youths are giving the subtle hints.
• Meanwhile, is Malaysia Biotech Corp ready to take on Singapore? "One ground-breaking proposal is to let promising biotech firms list even if they do not have a financial track record. The move could make Singapore the first stop for such firms in Asia". That is a very bold and competitive move. How will we counter this and continue to attract investors?
• On food price increase: Even religious ceremonies were not spared.

Answer to comments on "Malaysia for Malaysians and Special Rights of the Malays"

my answer:

bats, Article 153 grants the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, or King of Malaysia, responsibility for safeguarding the rights and privileges of the Malay and other indigenous peoples of Malaysia, collectively referred to as Bumiputra. The article specifies how the federal government may protect the interest of these groups by establishing quotas for entry into the civil service, public scholarships and public education. It is often considered to be part of the social contract (Wiki). The word "position" is just another preposition used. Let's skip the terminologies and technicalities of it. We all understand there's a provision for the Malays in the Constitution.

On scholarships and education; in general, the rural folks are far behind compared to those privileged in the cities with better infrastructure, resources and man power. The classic argument is that scholarships should be for low-income families and not for smart rich kids. We forget the middle-class group which is diminishing slowly over time. This is also another group that needs aid. Tertiary education is not cheap as you have experienced yourself. The poverty cycle is something hard to be breached. The kids in the rural area are behind compared to their peers in the cities due to family obligations and others. Question is: do we fund the poor but mediocre or fund the smart ones but could barely afford it (forget about the rich and the definition of rich for now). Is the requirement of a scholarship based on meritocracy or family wealth? It should be a balance of both.

Under privileged group is getting aid and fundings from the government. How do you think they get their books, uniforms, skim susu, transportation allowance, etc. How do you think ppl get to go to universities in Malaysia? Where do you think RM7B per year goes to if not for subsidies in education? There are vast improvements need to be done in our education system. There are leakages of course but a person as smart as you can't possibly believe that all of that is going to someone's pocket?

On acquisition of projects from influential people: this is not just a Malaysian problem, it's everywhere. The collusion of politics and business is unavoidable even in the developed countries. In the US, they are called the "Special Interest" groups ranging from guns for the constitutional provision of the right to bear arms, tobacco, oil, defence. We can get into details offline.

I won't say the execution of NEP was flawed. It has its weaknesses but we've seen an elevation of status. Maybe not as much as we would like, but better. The profession of lawyers and doctors are dominated by the Indians. Where do you think they went to school and who paid for their schooling? The construction of universities and institutions such as MARA have helped increase the number of Malay young professionals. There is still hard core poverty not just in Malaysia, but the whole planet. It doesn't mean we haven't done anything to improve. The most powerful country in the world couldn't even organize emergency teams when Katrina hit New Orleans. In the outskirt of Chicago, a bustling city in the US, lies Madison street where 1 out of 3 African Americans goes to jail for some felony due to poverty.

My stand has always been this: stop blaming others, you have to be responsible for your own well being. For people in privileged positions, participate and help out. This is what's lacking among youths these days who are too busy with their jobs. The next time you spend your weekend watching HBO, think about what you could have done for someone else.

from bats:

what started out as "Special Position.." at the beginning of the article morphed (unintentional, i'm sure) into "Special Rights..." by the end of the piece, and there-in lies the problem.

while the idea is noble, the execution, as i've witnessed, is anything but. 55% of the economic pie is no small feat, but are we ever going to achieve that if the country's wealth is only distributed amongst the ruling elite? it has become a family business and since families never really die, we're going nowhere.

we all know of folks who latch on to politicians in hope of projects, only to sub them out anyway. so what you have is a small circle of bumis and non-bumis who feast on the proverbial pie, while the ones who really need a little love don't get any. 55% or whatever that number is, will remain a pipe dream. what you'll get instead is a group of millionares, even billionares, but that's about it.

it's a touchy subject. blood has been shed over it, sure. but if that's the approach, then status quo will rule for decades to come. we can all accept, sit down and get on with it. SOS.

there is no harm in Islam being the official religion and the King being the head of state. Our country is unique and its identity is its badge of honour. god bless our country for that. I am pretty sure that with good governance, Malaysians will be fine with that, as they have been for yonks now.

what we must acknowledge is the fact that not only underprivelaged malays need this help. underprivelaged others need this handicap too. if that is understood and accepted, we can then put an end to the hijacking and put our country's wealth to good use. you're right, we're seeing it in the cities, but again, those calling for the total abolishment of this policy, the very ones who gained from it, should calm the f*ck down and accept that it will take time to uplift the economic standing of the underprivelaged, be it malays or anyone else.

for a start, the clowns bitching about PSD's decision to increase scholarhips for non-bumis should be flogged. what's their beef with children of other Malaysians who share the same IC colour?