Ghani: Bumi agenda must not focus on Malays only

The new bumiputera-centric measures slated to be announced by the prime minister on Saturday, should not just focus on Malays but on other bumiputera communities as well, says former Johor menteri besar Abdul Ghani Othman. 

"It should not just focus on Malays but also include Sabah and Sarawak bumiputeras who largely still live below the poverty line. We must help them," Ghani is quoted by Berita Harian as saying.

Ghani, who also chairs the Umno bumiputera agenda committee, called for efforts to be placed on closing the income gap by assisting the bottom 40 percent of bumiputera households.

Despite the New Economic Policy, Berita Harian reported him as saying, the bumiputera equity growth froze circa 1990s, due partly to weak political will to prioritise the bumiputera agenda, especially to help the poor.

Meanwhile, UiTM vice chancellor Sahol Hamid said the university would continue to bar non-bumiputera students from enrolling there. 

Sahol is quoted by Utusan Malaysia as saying that this was because the university's reason for existence is to grow the number of bumiputera professionals. 

"The country's independence is synonymous with the Malay struggle to become a respectable race (bangsa yang disegani) in Malaysia. As such, we will continue to defend UiTM as an institution only for Malays and bumiputera," he said.