The real slur on Malay dignity

Some Malay groups perpetuate the myth that Malays expect others to provide them a living.

COMMENT

Consciously or not, Utusan Malaysia yesterday gave an ironical twist to an opinion article calling for the employment of more Malays in government-linked corporations. The editor gave this heading for the article: “Melayu masih cari kerja makan gaji! (Malays still look for salaried jobs!)” The exclamation mark seemed to emphasise the irony.

The writer, Malay Consultative Council secretary-general Hasan Mad, said he was making the call because Malays were allegedly suffering discrimination at the hands of employers in the private sector. He also proposed a law aimed at protecting Malay workers in the private sector.

The Utusan editor probably did the right thing if his intention was to hint that it was time for Hasan’s group to start discouraging the Malays from acting like everyone owes them a living.

Such calls as Hasan has made are demeaning to all hardworking, competitive Malays out there, those who are eager to prove their capabilities and refuse to accept the patronising view that they are weak and must be protected.

Indeed, many capable Malay employees have complained about demoralising insinuations to the effect that they have made it big in the companies they serve only because of the colour of their skin.

One of Hasan’s complaints is that companies owned by non-Malays discriminate against Malays even at the point of hiring. This claim is at best suspect. We are more likely to come across Malay workers in non-Malay owned corporations than non-Malay employees in the public service. If anything, it is the government and the GLCs that need to be fairer and more inclusive in their hiring.

Hasan must also not forget that the affirmative action policy must take much of the blame for the decline in the public service over the last few decades. When the hiring pool is virtually limited to only one particular group, it is understandable that the pick of qualified prospective employees gets smaller. In the end, the unsuitable ones are also hired to make up the numbers, while many qualified employees from the other groups are left out. This is not to say that most Malays are unqualified, but the reality is that in any group and race, there will be those who are capable and those who are not.

If you “tolong Melayu” too much, you’ll end up hiring the inept ones as well. In the end, they will most probably bring the GLCs to financial ruin, which will drain the country’s coffers, to which the Malays also contribute.