'Malays form the core of the country'

The people have to remember that Malays form the core of this country and if the core is shaken, the country will be unstable, said the political secretary to the prime minister Muhammad Zahid Md Arip (above).

He was responding to the government's decision to not ratify the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (Icerd).

Muhammad Zahid said the country has its own mould in keeping the unity among the races and it has been proven successful.

"No problem if our country didn't ratify Icerd. We have our own mould which is proven successful. Our country is developed, the people live in harmony, so there's no problem. The Malays had accepted other races in this country. The country has more non-Malay millionaires than Malays.

"Whatever it is, Malaysians have to remember that the core of this country are Malays. If this core is shaken, so will the country. The Malays' worry will lead to the instability of this country," he told Malaysiakini, adding that he is not being racist but just stating the fact.

Earlier, he handed over schoolbags to the schoolchildren in conjunction with the 2019 Return to school programme at Setiawangsa, co-organised by Philip Morris Malaysia, the foundation Salam Malaysia, and the Kuala Lumpur City Hall.

Muhammad Zahid, who is the grandson of the former deputy prime minister Ghafar Baba, added that the decision not to ratify the Icerd is for the best interest of the country, and not for the prime minister's political interest or because Dr Mahathir Mohamad was pressured by other parties.

"As someone with vast political experience, Mahathir is steady when dealing with this kind of issues. He can value between the good and the bad. The pressure against him during (the former premier) Najib Abdul Razak's era was worse than this.

"He is confident with whatever he does," Muhammad Zahid said, adding that the look East Policy espoused by Mahathir taught "us that there is no need for a hardworking race to cheat on other people".  - Mkini