you want Malays to be competitive...try this kot!!!

The lessons from Singapore Malays — Sakmongkol AK47


AUG 1 — You are talking crap. You should learn a thing or two from the fate befallen the Singapore Malays.

How anyone wants to express his disagreement is not the issue here. I wrote a short article about the Singapore Malays. The way of expressing your disagreement such as above, prevents a meaningful debate about this matter.

Yes, I am aware that a seminal work on the condition of the Malays was done by Lily Zubaidah Rahim in her book, The Singapore Dilemma: the political and educational marginality of the Malay community. She has gone to write a second book on that issue.

This is precisely my point why we Malays in Malaysia should not interfere in the affairs of Malays across the causeway. They have their own spokesman or spokeswoman who can articulate their cause. Why should we confer upon ourselves, a busybody status and try to show Singapore Malays a thing or two? Take care of our Malays here.

The central thesis of Lily Zubaidah’s book is that the marginalization of the Malays in Singapore has less to do with their cultural deficits as it does with the institutional and structural factors in the political and educational system. In other words the enabling

environment imposed as it were, by the political establishment of the dominant ethnic community. Bluntly put, by the Chinese dominated government.

Now, here is the lesson which should be taken to heart by Malaysian Malays. Suppose the general iniquity that we suffer (economically, educationally etc.) has less to do with our cultural deficits, where then should we look for the main cause?

The only answer is that, the present lot of our Malays here in Malaysia is caused by our own institutional and educational structural impediments imposed by the dominant political power dominated by our own Malays. In other words, if I were to use the reasoning by Lily Zubaidah , in reverse, then I say, the iniquities that we suffer is the doing of the politics of our own race.

The reasons holding back our Malays therefore are not so much due to our cultural deficits which can be overcome, but perhaps more with our political arrangements. The sooner UMNO realise this, the better.

This is the crap we want to have undone. — sakmongkol.blogspot.com

* Sakmongkol AK47 is the nom de plume of Datuk Mohd Ariff Sabri Hj. Abdul Aziz. He was Pulau Manis assemblyman(2004-2008).