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Since its disastrous performance in the 12th General Election, UMNO and Malay supremacists have been putting fear into the hearts and minds of the Malays that the Malays will loose political power to the Chinese unless the Malays support UMNO. This could not be further than the truth. Due to the way the political system is structured in Malaysia, Malays will continue to the lead this country into the distant future.
Since the 12th General election in Malaysia, where the ruling coalition had its worst performance, the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), led by none other than the Deputy Prime Minister (read here), Malaysia's fading dictator, Dr. Mahathir (read here and here) and Malaysia's latest Malay chauvinist par excellence, Ibrahim Ali (Read here), have resorted to tried and tested method of putting fear into the Malay community that the opposition, led by two formidable and respected Malay…
When I was a child living in China, nearly 15 years ago. I was always aware that protests from China's government to U.S. were full of news headlines. And such protests were more politically, less economically. In my opinion, China was like a crazy woman who pursued a closer relationship with the handsome man - U.S. As U.S. demanded little from this lovely woman and even ignored existence of her, this lady was normally unhappy and even angry with this ridiculous relationship. She wanted to…
There are two key events that have changed the course of Malaysian history - the first is the attempted creation of the Malayan Union by the British colonialists which galvanised the different Malay communities in Peninsular Malaya (Malaya) to form the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO). This predisposed Malaysia towards racial politics which ultimately led to the May 13, 1969 race riots - the second key incident - and the continuing conundrum Malaysia faces in race-relations.
In the beginning
There are two key events that have changed the course of Malaysian history. The first was the attempted creation of the Malayan Union by the British colonialists. The second is the infamous May 13, 1969. Both are closely inter-twined as the first galvanised the different Malay communities in Peninsular Malaya (Malaya) to form the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) which spearheaded the fight against the Malayan Union and had the profound impact of predisposing Malaysia…
Malaysia requires reforms in three key areas – civil, political and economic – for Malaysia to move towards a stable high income economy. Najib has focused only on the fringes of public sector and economic reforms. Without addressing the actual log-jams, Najib’s reforms will only be short-lived, possible to help him and BN win the next election but edge Malaysia closer towards a failed state.
Malaysia is in trouble. The current political arrangement - the élite inter-ethnic bargaining - is fraying. The ruling coalition - Barisan Nasional (BN) - faces serious internal struggles both among and within the component parties. The majority of urban Malaysians had rejected them at the 2008 general election. Socially, the rise of religious and racial extremism driven by the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) has reached unprecedented heights. Economically, Malaysia is being battered…
In preparing for the thirteenth general election, it is important that the opposition coalition identify the key factors that provide the infrequent surprising electoral results in favour of the opposition as a means of preparing themselves.
In academic circles, Malaysia is categorised as a dysfunctional democracy. In this context, the electoral process is used to legitimate the Barisan Nasional's (BN) authoritarian rule and not as a means to elect a representative government. Government strictures limit the ability of Malaysians to make an informed decision and opposition parties to compete on equal footing. Despite these limitations, electoral competitions throw surprises as reflected in the third, eighth, tenth and twelfth…
Najib’s first year has been a return to Mahathirism after the apparent failure to move BN and UMNO to the middle. Najib has resorted to sloganeering, goodies for the Rakyat, some economic reforms but nothing else. Only time will tell if Malaysians will fall for this tried and tested BN strategy and if Najib is set to become Malaysia's greatest or worst Prime Minister!
In the first and second part, we analysed Najib's signature policy - 1Malaysia, People First, Performance Now. Except for the Government Transformation Programme (GTP) which has contributed to some incremental change (listen here) - the concept as a whole, one year on has been a failure.
So what exactly has Najib been doing in his first year?
Simple - consolidating power, bolstering his image both domestically and internationally and attempting to eliminate Pakatan Rakyat - Anwar Ibrahim…
The plight of structural unemployment and gaggles of working poor, it appears, are here to stay. But are they the inevitable consequence of economic liberalisation? They are not. If we balance the burden of economic transformation on labor and capital, and strengthen progression, we can have it both: near full employment and open borders.
"Shame on you, EUR 4,81 for my dad!" (German Trade Union Association campaign on minimum wage)
The sentiment is right, but the policy is flawed.
No, the…
Asian Development Bank (ADB) released its annual Asian Development Outlook 2010 on April 13. In terms of each Asian country, this report specifically reviews its economic performance in 2009, points out underlying economic challenges as well as possible proposals to resolve them, and finally aims to forecast its economic prospect.
As for China, this report concludes China's economic performance in 2009 as a typical V-shaped economic recovery, underpinned by strongly expansionary fiscal and…
Najib is set to become Malaysia's worst ever Prime Minister.
In the first part, we analysed Najib's 1Malaysia concept in practice. We now analyse the other components of Najib's slogan '…People First, Performance Now…': this component is meant to signal that Najib's administration will prioritise the needs of the people first and enhance government delivery systems.
How has Najib put the people first?
From the perspective of democratic practices, Najib has shown utter contempt for Malaysians who voted for the opposition. He is credited with overthrowing…
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