UMNO leaders have risen in unison to malign Keadilan Nasional for turning down a racial Summit with Mahathir on "Malay unity."
To the Malays, they accuse Keadilan of forsaking the Malay race.
To the non-Malays and the Nation at large, they justify their calls for racial unity talks by claiming that Malay unity is the pre-requisite to national unity, stability and peace.
To the discredit of UMNO, all the above talks are hollow. For the contrary is true: in a multi-racial country, unity along racial lines is a major stumbling block to national integration, and hence national unity. Corollary to that, a major re-alignment of political allegiance in accordance with one's political ideology irrespective of race would be a great breakthrough in national integration and economic advancement at this stage of our history.
Within that context, the continued existence of racial political parties such as UMNO and MCA is a surest bet that Malaysia will not move towards the creation of Bangsa Malaysia and Vision 2020. Similarly, Mahathir's increasing wailing of the racial sirens (as if under siege), while in the same breath, prodding the Nation to strive towards Vision 2020 (where Bangsa Malaysia forms the centerpiece) must be viewed as an act of hypocrisy.
The hypocrisy of those trumpeting the virtues of racial unity under a racial party can easily be discerned by a proper understanding of the nature of politics.
In a democratic society, there are bound to be differences of opinion on the philosophy and style of running the affairs of the country. These opinions are developed and theorized as political ideologies. They relate to the policies on a whole range of fields such as economics (production and distribution), education, social services, defence etc.
People of similar political ideologies then gather together to form political parties to work for the realization of their political ideals. These political parties would then compete with each other in a process called election, where the party supported by most people would be entrusted to form the government to administer the country.
This democratic process works to the best interest of the populace, as it encourages the development of excellence all the way from the conceptualization of ideas, to the formulation of policies, to the their implementation finally.
However, in a multi-racial country, this ideal picture of a model democracy will be shattered, if the country concerned practices racial politics through racial parties. Racialism and rational politics are incompatible. It is mathematically most improbable that, in a multi-racial society, the divisions of political ideologies coincide exactly with the divisions of races. Hence, the existence of a racial party would mean that members of that party must make their political convictions on various aspects of national life be subservient to their racial loyalty. It follows therefore that objectivity and rationality are playing second fiddle to racial dictates. This is the tragedy of racial parties to a Nation: the loss of rationality in the decision making process. It means the abandonment of the politics of excellence, which is the essence of democracy.
On a national level, the consequences of racial politics are: mediocre leadership, rampant corruption, national disunity and potential national disintegration, leading to retarded economic progress and weak national defence.
On a micro-level, racialism causes animosity among individuals (of different races), corruption of morals, distortion of decent values, interference with business functions, leading to immoral, cohesionless and retrogressive society.
Racialism also violates universal human values and breaches the fundamental teachings of all religions. Ethnic injustices are being increasingly abhorred and penalized by the world community. Examples: former apartheid South Africa, Fiji after the latest racial coup detat, kosovo, Bosnia.
In this day of fast moving IT and rapidly shaping global village, where increasing number of people around the globe are communicating among themselves at the speed of lightning, the walls of civilizations, cultures and values are fast disappearing. In such a world, any system or value that violates human dignity will increasingly be deprived of its breathing space. So, the days of rampant racialism are numbered, alongside with other systems and values incompatible with universal democratic values.
In Malaysia, the Malays can take pride for having made tremendous strides in the fields of education, industry and commerce since the early days of Independence, resulting in the emergence of a formidable middle class, second to none. No doubt there are inherent weaknesses among the top Malay entrepreneurs as exposed during the trials and tribulations in the recent Asian Financial Crisis. But these weaknesses are not due to the lack of affirmative action, but the excesses of it. This is where Mahathir's failure is most glaring.
Mahathir has used the cover of affirmative action policy to dish out large-scale privatization projects and huge lucrative government contracts to cronies (mostly Malays and politically linked) without proper tenders. Coupled with generous bank loans (mostly politically engineered, often becoming non-repayable), enterprises and conglomerates rise and expand meteorically. However, over spoon-feeding and over spending are not the kind of elements conducive to the development of true entrepreneurship and sound management. The result is many a train of weak wagons driven by a faulty locomotive. These trains will not survive a rough journey.
There is no short to entrepreneurship. Certainly not by a political decree or by a windfall of cash. It has to be acquired in a laborious and time-consuming process: from education, to training, to trials and experience, to finally success (self-earned) -- all of which must take place in an environment of free and fair competition.
Mahathir's failure has tragic consequences, not only to the Malays, but also to the entire Nation. He has bled the resources of the Country to critical level, corrupted society, retarded economic progress and blocked national integration. He has caused Malaysia to be what it is today -- ill equipped to face competition from even its Asean neighbours, not to mention from competitors further afar. This is demonstrated by his increasing nervousness and resistance against imminent and inevitable free trade.
To skeptics of the above criticism of Mahathir, they need only to look at what has become of Mahathir's own party UMNO. Those old enough should have no difficulty to tell the difference between UMNO today and UMNO pre-Mahathir. In the old days, UMNO was all nationalism and no smell of money. Today, it stinks of money. It is a grotesque entanglement of money and intrigue, wrought by years of corruption, and readily implodes in every party election. Its hopelessness is most dramatically illustrated by none other than the Party President Mahathir himself, who frequently breaks down and cries uncontrollably, apparently aggrieved by the state of destruction UMNO has found itself in.
Malays are at a cross-road. Should they rally to Mahathir's clarion call for Malay unity? Where would that lead Malays to? A revival of UMNO as the grand champion of Malays to lead Malaysia to the challenges of the IT era? A grand alliance of Malay political parties?
Or should the Malays decide to move away from racialism and shift resolutely to the Reformasi movement inspired by Anwar Ibrahim, to open a new chapter for the Malays as well as for the whole Nation?
Kim Quek
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