1Melayu, 1Bumi: Dr M and Najib playing "multi-layer" politics

Pakatan Rakyat leaders accused Prime Minister Najib Razak and his mentor Mahathir Mohamad of playing “multi-layer” political games withrUtusan Malaysia’s 1Melayu, 1Bumi proposal.

“This 1Melayu, 1Bumi movement shows that Malaysian politics are moving backwards. Our founding fathers secured independence with the goal of peace and harmony without anyone bearing grudge or hatred toward each other,” PKR secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution toldMalaysia Chronicle.

“Malaysia is a place for all races and religion and this has been since olden days. If we have this 1Melayu, 1Bumi movement, it will only widen the gap between the races.”

Illogical reasons given

Utusan’s assistant chief editor Zaini Hassan had earlier this week suggested the formation of such a movement to rally Malay unity amid concerns that the Chinese might gain the political upper-hand.

This despite the fact that Malaysia form more than 55 per cent of the country’s 28 milloion population and the Chinese less than 30 per cent.

However, the proposal hit a wall when both Najib and Mahathir officially distanced themselves from the idea.

Said Najib: “For the Malay community, what is important is that they continue supporting Umno. That plays a major role in uniting the Malay community in terms of politics by supporting Umno.”

Said Mahathir: "I hope it doesn't happen. It is very bad for Malaysia. If we go ahead with this, there will be a two-party system in politics. If one is Malay-dominated and the other is Chinese-dominated, it will be a disaster for this country.”

Both men were speaking at separate press conferences, with Najib in Putrajaya and Mahathir in Kuala Lumpur.

Inconsistent Mahathir

Even so, despite the official disapproval, ultra-Malay rights group Perkasa has already offered to lead the charge. Most of Perkasa’s members are from Umno and Mahathir himself is the patron.

“It is out of the question. If this is going to be implemented by Perkasa, then there is no future for Malaysia. Perkasa is a movement that promotes racial tension so this idea should be scrapped in the first place. It promotes racial sentiments and I definitely scorn this movement,” MP for Kuantan Fuziah Salleh told Malaysia Chronicle.

“This also shows that Mahathir is not being consistent. He is endorsing racism by being in Perkasa. Although, he said he doesn't want to have anything to do with the 1Melayu, 1Bumi movement, it doesn't mean that he disapproves of it.”

Scaring Malays back to Umno's fold

The Utusan proposal was sprung after the Pakatan scored unprecedented success in the recent Sarawak state election, sweeping almost all the Chinese-dominated constituencies.

But whether Utusan truly believed this meant the Chinese could topple the Malays, or it was just trying scare the Malays back into Umno’s fold is debatable.

Whichever the truth, due to past experiences, many Malaysians believe this was the latest plot by the Umno elite to cling to power.

Umno is the largest Malay political party in the country with 3 million members and the majority are decent hardworking folk in sharp contrast to their corruption-tainted top leadership.

“Chinese are not a threat to the Malays. We just want to live in peace and harmony and work hard to provide a better economy for the country. The Chinese population is also getting lower compared to before,” Beruas MP and Perak DAP chairman Ngeh Koo Ham told Malaysia Chronicle.

“It is now 23.5 per cent which proves that it is complete nonsense to say the Chinese will overpower the Malays in politics. We must not compete with each other but compete with the world. As for Mahathir, he is suffering from selective amnesia. We should just ignore him because he is inconsistent and a real threat to national harmony.”

Funding 1Melayu, 1Bumi

Indeed, in the wake of the Pakatan success in Sarawak, Mahathir had fired the first salvo. He scolded the Chinese there and warned that since they voted for DAP and PKR, they would not be represented in the Sarawak government.

Other Umno and BN leaders rushed to follow his cue and condemned the Sarawakian Chinese for making their own bed.

Nevertheless, the 85-year old Mahathir was also lambasted for his extreme remarks, with many prominent citizens mincing few words. They also slammed the BN government for perceived underhanded tactics that include withholding development funds for opposition constituencies.

“I cannot understand why this should be so. Regardless of political affiliation, these are also taxpayers. They are entitled to development,” Paul Low, the president of Transparency Malaysia International, told Malaysia Chronicle.He was speaking in his personal capacity.

Meanwhile, Saifuddin challenged Najib to charge Perkasa under the Sedition Act, should it insist of going through with the 1Melayu, 1Bumi movement.

“As to why Najib and Mahathhir are publicly rejecting the idea, it can be just sandiwara (play-acting) and they are playing their usual multi-layer politics. To the Malays, Perkasa is linked to Umno - so whatever it does will surely be in line with the wishes of the top Umno leadership. I am not surprised or impressed Mahathir says he is staying away from this. But we do not know who is funding the idea, it could be the Umno elite and that would include him," said Saifuddin.

- Malaysia Chronicle