Guan Eng admits the racial divide is hurting Malaysia’s economy

(MMO) – Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng in his Christmas message today said economic growth can only be sustained if the country remains united.

The DAP secretary-general said Malaysia’s economic growth can only thrive by moving away from policies devoted to racial or religious hostility and command economies, to those that pursue investments, focus on economic welfare, as well as promote private enterprise and talent diversity.

“The new Pakatan Harapan federal government under the leadership of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad is committed towards representing all Malaysians regardless of demography or geography.

“At present, Pakatan Harapan is the only political coalition that can represent Malaysians from all races, religions and backgrounds whether they are from Perlis, Johor, Sabah or Sarawak,” he said in a statement today.

Lim said Opposition parties have struggled as they were either corrupt or completely incompetent in managing the economy to the extent that they could not afford to pay the salaries of their civil servants when in power.

“To stay relevant, Opposition parties have abandoned the political centre and adopted a racist line or extremist position based on religion.

“Not only do non-Muslims and non-Malays not be given the right to serve as ministers, but their rights enshrined in the Federal Constitution will be further undermined and diminished to the extent that Christmas celebrations is unacceptable,” he said.

Lim then urged all Malaysians to unite and reject such racial and religious extremism by upholding the Federal Constitution.

“Should these racists and religious extremists succeed, Malaysia would face not just ruin and deprivation, but our children’s future would also be destroyed.

“We can only succeed by working together to be stronger together.

“Let us focus on uniting all Malaysians together to grow Malaysia into a strong economy that can be shared by all,” he said.