Ku Li: Our civil servants can’t even write a simple letter

SHAH ALAM: Former finance minister Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah said the country’s international standing has taken a dip to the point that Malaysians are no longer sought after for their academic and language skills.

Sharing his observation, the veteran Umno member popularly known as Ku Li said he was shocked when he found out that some civil servants today could not even write in proper English.

“A lot of our people, even in the civil service, cannot even write a simple letter. I am very embarrassed. I can only point out that it is education that is pulling our people back. Who suffers? The whole country,” Ku Li said during an exclusive interview with FMT, responding to a question on education.

The Kelantan prince, currently Malaysia’s longest-serving MP who has represented Gua Musang since 1969, said that in the past, Malaysians were known for their English language skills and were the ones who drafted important statements at international conferences.

“I go to a lot of international conferences,” said the founding chairman of national oil company Petronas, as he narrated another personal experience.

“Before, as we all could speak English well, though not very well, they always called us. Not Indonesians, not even the Filipinos who speak English all the time.

“They’d rather have us to draft communiques and press statements, or sit in caucuses and mini conferences. We Malaysians were always singled out.

“But now nobody wants us, because we can’t even write, and with what is written, we can’t even read!” said the plain-talking politician, who three decades ago narrowly lost to Dr Mahathir Mohamad in one of the most divisive elections in Umno’s history.

Ku Li said many neighbouring countries have done better, leaving Malaysia behind.

“That reflects very badly on us because of the lack of education. We are unable to catch up.”

‘Government wrong on the economy’

Ku Li painted a similarly bleak picture of Malaysia’s economic competitiveness, and hit out at the government’s claim of strong economic fundamentals.

“Our productivity has fallen. The government says our productivity has increased. It cannot be,” he said.

He added that weakening purchasing power compared to just a decade ago was enough to show that “something has gone wrong”.

“If RM1 cannot buy the same amount of things as what we could five or 10 years ago, then something has gone wrong. You can only ascribe it to productivity which has fallen,” said Ku Li, who was finance minister under Mahathir and his predecessor Hussein Onn.

Ku Li was groomed by Malaysia’s second prime minister Razak Hussein, the father of Najib Razak.

A key responsibility he was given was to narrow the wealth gap between Malays and other races, a critical goal of Razak’s government in the aftermath of the 1969 racial riots.

Ku Li now looks back with a sense of disappointment on the role of government-linked companies (GLCs) to boost economic development, something he himself had once played when he headed Petronas.

“What are these GLCs doing? I ask that question myself,” he said.

Excerpts from the interview: Ku Li on education

FMT: You talked about the importance of education. But there are so many obstacles in our way. What can be done to change this, because it leads to competitiveness to getting the country back on track again.

Ku Li: We are lagging behind some of the countries which were not doing well, but now they are leaping forward. That reflects very badly on us because of the lack of education. We are unable to catch up.

A lot of our people, even in the civil service, cannot even write a simple letter. I am very embarrassed. I can only point out that it is education that is pulling our people back. Who suffers? The whole country.

I go to a lot of international conferences. Before, because we all could speak English well, though not very well, they always called us, not Indonesians, not even Filipinos who speak English all the time.

So they rather have us draft communiques and press statements, or sit in caucuses and mini conferences. We Malaysians were always singled out. But now nobody wants us, because we can’t even write, and with what is written, we can’t even read!

Ku Li on the economy

FMT: Tun Razak brought you into the government. You were the technocrat, a young finance minister. Then, there was the move to build the economy and ensure the Malays had a fair share of the economic pie. Now you look at the GLCs, and do you ask yourself, if we did the right thing in the last 25 years?

Ku Li: What are these GLCs doing! I ask that question myself.

FMT: Coming back to you, a person who was handpicked by Tun Razak to do this, do you look back and ask, have we achieved economic success?

Ku Li: The answer is no. People are grumbling now. They can’t make ends meet. Our ringgit is falling, the value of ringgit within our market system is also falling. That’s why we can’t get what we used to buy, because of inflation.

Our productivity has fallen. The government says our productivity has increased. It cannot be. If RM1 cannot buy the same amount of things as what we could five or 10 years ago, then something has gone wrong. You can only ascribe it to productivity which has fallen.

-FMT