Ku Li - Muhyiddin's 'Malay first' stand contradicts 1M'sia...

Former finance minister Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah said that although there is a 1Malaysia official document, one leader openly transgresses his own official policy by declaring himself "Malay first and Malaysian second".
 
Tengku Razaleigh, an Umno member, did not name the leader but the remark is believed to be directed at Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin.

The Kelantan prince said that the 1Malaysia concept involves the whole country, and requires every Malaysian to perceive oneself as Malaysian first before race.

"However, we have a leader who openly transgresses his own official policy by declaring that he is ‘Malay first’ and ‘Malaysian second’.

"The statement comes as a severe blow not just to the concept of 1Malaysia, but also as a nullification of Jiwa Malaysia or the National Spirit that (first prime minister) Tunku Abdul Rahman was trying hard to inculcate," he said.
 
Tengku Razaleigh said this in his speech titled 'A plea for Unity' at the breakfast meeting programme organised by Paddy Schubert Sdn Bhd today. He said that there is little surprise that people can no longer recognise "the jiwa" (or heart) as they don't feel as though they are fully Malaysian.

"It is strange that after 55 years of freedom, we have not learnt the simple art of living together as brothers and sisters. The country's source of strength is unity, and this source of strength has been slowly whittled away over the years."

"We have become a nation of strangers, as evidenced in the fields of politics, the economy, education and the civil service.

"The strong presence of communal political parties in the country is chiefly to be blamed for the sad state of race relations in the country," he said.
 
These political parties, the Kelantan prince stressed invariably support racial policies so much that racial sentiments are imbibed by the people whom they represent as well as in their day-to-day administration, resulting in the powers that be disregarding the constitutional provision that "all persons are equal before the law.

NEP not for creating Malay capitalists

Tengku Razaleigh, who is also Gua Musang MP, also spoke about the New Economic Policy (NEP), formulated after the May 13, 1969 riots, was conceived in 1971, not long after the Tunku had retired as prime minister.

"It was primarily created to address poverty, and to raise the level of Malay participation in the economy. It was intended for all Malaysians, and not just for the Malays or bumiputeras," he said.

"As a former finance minister, let me emphasise that it was never the intention of the NEP to create an incubated class of Malay capitalists," he stressed.

Since former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad's time, it is well known that a few Malay entrepreneurs were annointed to spearhead or raise Malay equity to achieve a 30 percent ownership of the economy.

Individuals like Abdul Halim Saad from Renong, Tajudin Ramli of Malaysia Airlines among others.

However, generally Malays ,it is claimed, have not yet reached that  target with the wealth concentrated in the hands of a select few.Tengku Razaleigh, or Ku Li as he is affectionately known asked where have all the non- Malays gone in the civil service.

Non-Malay presence lacking

"After 1969, suddenly there was this attempt to recruit mostly Malays into the civil service.

"It is tragic that the civil service does not reflect the racial composition of the Malaysian population, as the predominant presence of only one race tends to engender a sub-culture that is antithetical to the evolution of a dynamic and efficient civil administration in the country."

He also pointed out that the present school system is not what it used to be. The non-Malays prefer to send their children to vernacular schools, as the national schools have assumed an exclusively Malay character.

"Needless to say, national schools have become even less attractive to the non-Malays as English is no longer used in the teaching of mathematics and science.

"The situation will be very different if all discriminatory practices in the education system were to be abolished, and a common system of education for all is adopted."

 

"National unity is the one area that we cannot afford to ignore, and the real genesis of national unity." 

Tengku Razaleigh pointed out that parliament can work to ensure national unity as it is the legislature , having the final say in charting the direction the country, and there is a need for a strong and resolute government which recognises this and formulates the right policies for the propagation of a cohesive and integrated society.

If parliament, he said, enacts policies that are just and fair for all Malaysians based on meritocracy and need, more than half the battle for national unity would be won.

"In this respect, the rakyat as voters must realize that in the ultimate they alone hold the key to the future of this country."- malaysiakini

Ku Li: 'Melayu dahulu' bertentangan 1Malaysia

Bekas menteri kewangan Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah menyelar "seorang pemimpin" yang berpendirian "Melayu dahulu, rakyat Malaysia kedua" sedangkan negara ini memakai konsep 1Malaysia.

Beliau - yang juga pemimpin Umno bahagian - walaupun tidak menamakan pemimpin berkenaan, ia bagaimanapun dipercayai merujuk kepada kenyataan Timbalan Perdana Menteri Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin sebelum ini.

Katanya, konsep 1Malaysia melibatkan seluruh negara dan semua rakyat Malaysia perlu merujuk dirinya sebagai rakyat Malaysia sebelum merujuk kepada kaum.

"Kenyataan itu hadir sebagai pukulan yang teruk bukan sahaja kepada konsep 1Malaysia, tetapi juga dianggap sebagai peniadaan jiwa Malaysia atau roh negara yang cuba disemai dengan sungguh-sungguh oleh perdana menteri (pertama) Tunku Abdul Rahman," katanya.

Tengku Razaleigh berkata demikian dalam ucapannya tentang perpaduan anjuran Paddy Schubert Sdn Bhd di Kuala Lumpur hari ini.- malaysiakini

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