Throw out ‘Malaysian Malaysia’ concept to improve ties with Umno, DAP told

Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah says the motto undermines the Malays and creates distrust between them and the other races.

(FMT) – Ties between Umno and the DAP can improve if the latter abandons its “Malaysian Malaysia” slogan, says Umno veteran Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah.

Tengku Razaleigh, popularly known as Ku Li, said the concept has stirred distrust that Malays have for the DAP.

“(There are) those who are upset (by the concept) because they (DAP) want to bring the position (of the non-Malays) on par with what the Malays enjoy today,” he said in an exclusive interview with FMT.

“That is why they (DAP) advocate Malaysian Malaysia. If they just forget about that, I think the (Umno-DAP) relationship can be very good,” he added.

The “Malaysian Malaysia” concept has been closely associated with the DAP and its leaders since its founding in 1966.

Coined by Lee Kuan Yew when Singapore was still part of the federation, it envisions “a Malaysia in which all Malaysians regardless of race, language or religion share equally in the opportunities of life”.

Umno leaders have consistently urged the DAP to consider dropping the slogan if it wants broader support in the Malay community.

But DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook said last year that was not necessary.

He said the principle behind the slogan has been properly explained and mutually agreed upon before the unity government led by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim was formed.

He also reiterated the DAP’s support for the position of Islam as the official religion, the Malay language as the national language, and the special privileges for Malays and natives of Sabah and Sarawak as outlined in Article 153 of the Federal Constitution.

Razaleigh, the former Gua Musang MP, also claimed that Malay privileges had been misunderstood as special treatment, clarifying that they were entitlements as outlined in the “social contract”.

In the Malaysian context, the social contract refers to an unwritten agreement, struck before Merdeka, between the Malays and the Chinese and Indians.

“The Malay rulers agreed to give them (non-Malays) citizenship on condition that they accept the special (position of) the Malays,” said Razaleigh.