Review how bumi policies are implemented

THE prime minister has assured Parliament that the government will uphold the special position and rights of Malays and special position of the natives in Sabah and Sarawak and the ethnic rights of other groups.
He said the Yang di-Pertuan Agong is empowered to protect three areas that are special to the Malays and natives of Sabah and Sarawak, namely the public service, the economy and education.
He outlined the areas as "jobs in the public sector, the giving of scholarships and the issuance of permits or licences".
Has the time come to improve the implementation of bumi policies to make the attainment of the goals more effective and fair to all?
The government needs to improve the racial and religious composition of the public service. Perhaps some kind of quota system is now essential, as the old systems of recruitment and promotion have not worked well.
On scholarships and training, be fair in the distribution among our many races. This is a major source of frustration for all students, even bumi students who are from poor homes. Often, the wealthy bumi students are known to have won scholarships over their underprivileged brothers and sisters.
The issuance of permits and licences have been also abused. The most qualified bumis have not always been given licences and permits according to merit.
Often unqualified and underqualified bumis, who were friends and allies, were give permits. This led to more corruption and cronyism, and a wastage of resources and productivity and competitiveness.
The liberal award of approved permits is a case in point. How many rich bumis were created who did not advance further than being mere rentiers and easy going traders?
Where are most of the best qualified bumi businessmen and women today? They are mostly in secure government-linked companies, earning big salaries, without taking much business risks. So can they develop and grow as real entrepreneurs?
Tenders and contracts were often awarded to inept bumi contractors, who usually subcontract the tenders to non-bumi contractors at higher prices.
The consequent squeeze in profits, often led to more corruption, lower standards of performance and much more inefficiencies.
All this abuse led to rising costs and higher prices which the poor consumers had to bear.
We urge the government to remove these abuses and help the genuine bumi businessmen and women.
What is wrong in providing more contracts to able and efficient non-Malay businessmen and women, especially those who can form joint enterprises among all races, to improve the effectiveness in the implementation of bumi policies.
A review of the implementation of all bumi and related policies should be undertaken as a matter or priority to ensure that the bumis and other races and religions are protected and are able to advance as envisaged in the Federal Constitution and in the spirit of our Founding Fathers.
This will be the main way to enable Malaysia to become great again.
Tan Sri Ramon Navaratnam
Chairman
Asli Centre for Policy Studies