The changing mental landscape of Malays?-3

DS Najib has been talking non-stop of everything that can bring good to the country. But I didn't see any result, as if he forget everything he said once he finished talking. Our DPM has a brain more like a 17-year olds. And I didn't hear anything worth listening from the UMNO vice-presidents, and what more senior ministers, especially Rais Yatim.  When I think of the country's future I feel hopeless. I don't think UMNO, under the present leadership, can lead the country forward.

This is the most damning indictment on the leadership of our country. It would seem our leadership has lost all perception of credibility.

I am afraid I can't share this gentleman's pessimism. The jury is still out on opposition controlled governments. It's still early to tell. The PKR people in government are all ex UMNO people. They have the same culture and probably the same deplorable habits. They don't have the same emotional constitution like the DAP and PAS people. They are going to be the sick man of PKR.

We will however agree that, despite the possible eventualities that can befall PR led governments, the shortcomings and deficiencies of the present national government , cannot and should not be trivialized nor ignored. So we continue to tell it as it is. It's like the PM once said- the opposition will not win elections, we lose them. Meaning, we must correct our faults. But who is to tell him and the UMNO leadership?

What is our priority? That is the first task of our leader. We have a 1Malaysia which in reality was the muhibbah started by Tun Razak. Coexistence based on mutual respect . Good, we feel nice about it. We Yee Sang together, we Daun Pisang together, we Rendang together. Do we live on ideas alone?

We have the NEM. Don't have a clue what's it's all about and how is the NEM relevant to Malays? More important, how can Malays take advantage of the NEM? We don't have a policy stating its principles. We paid RM 60 million to the few academics who have no inkling of the local environment trying to foist a new economic model on our country. Its free market in a text book. We love ideas. But we love ideas that work more.

We have that senior minister who doesn't explain to the people what NEM is all about. He is busy showing the PM the uniforms for the Merdeka Day celebrations. By the way, the cloth or uniform cost RM 50-100, or does it cost RM 50-100 per metre? How much are we going to spend for the celebrations?

Jawaharlal Nehru was a man of ideas. But the ideas couldn't work on Indian society because of the caste system. Ghandi wanted to create village economics- you sit with your loin cloth or kain pulikat by the spinning wheel while we are moving into the 21^st century. If I say, Ibrahim Ali is like Ghandi that would be insult to the great man that Ghandi was- but he wants Malays to sit by the spinning wheel and be oblivious to the world outside.

Ok, the PM is more like Nehru in terms of ideas- but can the ideas be foisted onto the Malay mental landscape?

The number 1 priority is economic development. Ibrahim Ali's issue is with the economics. Yes, we want the NEM but it must be spelt out clearly. At the moment the NEM is all ideas- eventually it comes to the question of what do people really want?

we had the NEP where the government gave out RM 54,000,000,000. Out of that , those who subscribed to Ibrahim Ali's brand of pressure economics, want more of that. Well, we have to realise that out of that RM 54 billion, only RM 2 billion worth of Malay equities remain while the others gave up RM 52 billion worth. Gave up as in cashing out so that they can lead as bourgeois a life as possible.

So why should I support another round of NEP that will probably end up the same? The PM is right to carry out a new model. All it needs is more amplification, more meat and more explanation to the people. We haven't done that.

Again, what do people really want? I remember reading somewhere what the Sage of Singapore said- at the end of the day do we think the people want to write editorials or do they want a house, a car, food on the table and a future for their children? At the end you have to answer, the people want reality, not concepts. We don't want to end up discussing and outshouting each other on what 1Malaysia means. Economically it may mean, some people own the whole of Malaysia.

I support the NEM which taken as a whole poses a new challenge to the mental set up of Malays. We adapt or perish. This part hasn't been amplified. On the other hand, We are told daily of our limitations. Utusan Malaysia raised the spectre that haunts every Malay- that if we lose political power, we perish. The PM wants to prepare Malays a Malaysia on a different economic plane- the media manipulators and mind benders are preparing Malays to look the other way.

We have lost real political power all this while because we couldn't back that up by economic power. Others with economic power exert greater persuasiveness over politics. The 28 year old TJ Lo exerts greater influence over politics because of his economic power. A few years ago, we lamented and condemned a certain 28 year old as being the most powerful. We now have a globe traveling, party hopping 28 year old, we marveled at him and hold him in jaw dropping awe. He is going to develop the RM 500 million Sunga Besi Air Base fellers- or really, he is going to flip the deal or has concluded that damn deal. The place is going to be developed by the owners of Pavilion.

We have this aim of making Malaysia a high income economy that by 2020, our PCI will be USD15k. we have a minister who says we will go bankrupt if we don't cut subsidies or we don't grow by at least 6%. If deficits outgrow the growth rate, we shall be bankrupt. Contradiction in terms right? Just one year our country goes bankrupt but a year later we become a high income country. Which means what? All the good deals and wealth making opportunities go to the top 20% who will actually reap gargantuan incomes that when divided by the population, still yield us a textbook high PCI.

Idris Jala may be good minister but he makes a lousy leader. We can't have a leader who airs his personal fears and reservations in public.

Leaders excite and inspire people.