Kedah delegate Lee Yean Wang said affirmative action under New Economic Policy (NEP) could be justified when it was introduced in the 1970 because the poverty rate amongst the bumiputra exceeded 60 percent at the time, but this is no longer the case today.
He
said this in his debate speech at the MCA annual general meeting (AGM)
today, which he began by inviting the delegates to stand up and observe a
moment of silence for the late anti-Apartheid leader Nelson Mandela (right). “Today the poverty rate amongst the bumiputra is under five percent. Do we need to defend the other 95 percent with these unfair policies because of the five percent, I think not.
“Just now we observed a moment of silence for the great Mandela. I feel that the fight against racial discrimination should not stop with his passing, so I urge our leaders to convey this to our prime minister.
“I hope one day, Najib would put an end to race-based policies and become the next Mandela,” he said, while urging for needs-based policies in its place.
Abolition of ‘racially biased’ policies is among the 13 resolutions debated and passed at the AGM today. Another resolution urges ‘stern action’ against those inciting or propagating racial hatred.
Another delegate, Foo Mun Hoong from Pahang, concurred and urged Umno leaders to put an end to the polices stop making ‘racially discriminatory’ statements like those made at the Umno general assembly earlier this month.
He added that MCA’s grassroots had in fact worked hard to serve the people and win support, but it’s efforts were reversed whenever Umno leaders make racist statements.
“Yesterday at the opening ceremony, the prime minister prescribed MCA four suggestions for improvement, and I agree.
“But besides MCA itself, I think Umno must severely punish leaders who make racist statements to show that BN opposes racism,” he said.
Meanwhile, Selangor delegate Wong Kai Shyuan said racist statements from Umno leaders are increasingly severe and this has hurt the feelings of the Chinese Malaysians.
‘Like a misaligned wheel’
He also slammed Umno Youth Chief Khairy Jamaluddin Abu Bakar’s speech at the Umno Youth General Assembly on Dec 4, saying that his claim that the private sector discriminates against bumiputra employees is “twisted logic”.
“I think in the globalising world, Khairy’s thinking is like a misaligned wheel and is veering off-course. Let’s tell him that his thinking needs some adjustment,” he said.
He added that the practice in private companies is to hire the best person for the job and has no room for affirmative action, unless the employer is keen on wasting money on inexperienced or under-qualified employees.
However, the party’s Youth Chief Chong Sin Woon warned that MCA itself is veering towards racial extremism and urged delegates to keep on the path of moderation.
He said MCA used to be a moderate party that fights for all races and was criticised by DAP as a ‘Chinese sell-out’, but now with newfound power in some state governments, DAP is finding that moderation is a necessity.
“I feel that we have lost our direction (after the 2008 and 2013 electoral defeats. To win Chinese support, we had championed Chinese rights more and this caused Malays to feel that MCA is extremist.
“In contrast, DAP is making inroads with the Malays, with the bumiputras of Sabah and Sarawak, and into a bigger political arena altogether,” he said.
He urged the party to return to the party’s roots of fighting for a just society.
“What the Chinese community demands is not much, and they are not seeking special treatment from the government. What we want is just this: A just society.
“This is MCA’s earliest political goal, and the one it needs most at this time,” he said.
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