TWISTED LOGIC: Govt not racist, we just want the majority to advance - Ahmad Maslan

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's emphasis on the bumiputera agenda during Budget 2015 is not because it's a racist government, said Deputy Finance Minister Ahmad Maslan.

This is to address the bumiputera population which is set to increase to 70 percent in 2020.

The government feels that only if bumiputeras advance, can Malaysia develop, he explained.

"We do not have the intention of being racist. We do not want this issue to arise," he said.

He was speaking at a briefing on GST to some 700 civil servants in Bangi, Selangor.

"However, Malaysia can only advance when 70 percent of its population advances."

"Others (non-bumiputera), they work hard and have managed to move forward, but the 70 percent still lags behind, with most still staying in villages," Ahmad said.

'Rich Chinese, non-bumis reproduce less'

He said that the bumiputera’s composition increased following a drop in the reproduction rate among Chinese and non-bumiputera families when they get rich.

The bumiputera meanwhile maintained three to six children in a family.

Najib has underlined the bumiputera agenda as one of the seven strategies in his budget speech, and announced plans to help the bumiputera.

Najib said the target of 30 percent bumiputera equity has yet to be achieved, and that the effective control over corporations was only 10 percent.

In his Ahmad also took the opportunity to lambast the ‘Rakyat Hakim Negara’ (People the judge of the nation) campaign being held in solidarity with the opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim's sodomy appeal in federal court next week.

He said that it was Anwar as the former finance minister who first proposed the new tax system.

"When you talk about 'Rakyat Hakim Negara’, that has only happened during national polls.

"But on a personal issue (like sodomy II trial), you have to take responsibility in your own capacity, there is no need to involve the rest of the people," said Ahmad, who is also the Umno information chief.

He cautioned the people who were urged to flood the federal court in Oct 28, Anwar's final appeal to Federal Court.

"Read the judgement of three judges from Court of Appeal, read it. This was the only judgement in the world that I read to find out (the reason of five-year sentence,)" he said, urging them to understand the reason of the judgement before supporting Anwar.

He said he hoped there won't be any chaos on the hearing of Anwar's appeal at Palace of Justice, Putrajaya. -M'kini