NEP 2.0 might help PH win Malay support, says analyst

Pakatan Harapan has been urged to come up with policies for the Bumiputera economy and the B40 and M40 Malay groups.

PETALING JAYA: An analyst has urged Pakatan Harapan (PH) to launch its own Bumiputera agenda to increase Malay support amid talk of further cooperation between PAS and Umno and the use of a common logo to woo Malay voters.

Azizuddin Mohd Sani from Universiti Utara Malaysia proposed an updated version of the New Economic Policy (NEP) with a time frame for implementation.

He said this would help end confusion and fear among Malays who feel that the PH government does not support the Malay agenda.

“Umno and PAS have no policies laid out, but they are able to garner Malay support by saying that PH does not support the Malays.

“Their propaganda is to accuse DAP of taking the rights (of Malays). They also blame Tun and the rest,” he said, referring to Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

Adding that PH still struggled to manage the country with clear policies in place, he said it needed to show achievable plans for the next three to five years, including its Bumiputera agenda.

“Tun needs to come up with policies that touch on the Bumiputera economy and social policies for the B40 and M40 Malay groups,” he told FMT.

On reports that PAS and Umno are considering a common logo, he said this would likely receive support from Malays who do not understand PH’s pledge to help all races from the B40 group.

This follows comments by PKR president Anwar Ibrahim, who said yesterday that the PH manifesto does not sideline Malays and Bumiputeras, but calls for a transparent and non-racial approach, with an agenda to help the poor and the alienated.

“The Malays are the majority but the approach is not racial,” Anwar had said.

However, Azizuddin said PH needed to prove its ability to capture the Malays’ interest while helping other races as well.

The NEP was an affirmative action programme formulated in the aftermath of the May 13, 1969 riots. It was adopted in 1971 for a period of 20 years, and succeeded by the National Development Policy launched by Mahathir in 1991. - FMT