A DAP lawmaker has slammed Bersatu president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s proposal to establish a body similar to the United Chinese School Committees Association (Dong Zong) for the Bumiputera, saying the suggestion reflects a misunderstanding of both Dong Zong and the current system.
According to Kepong MP Lim Lip Eng, Dong Zong exists to safeguard the right of the Malaysian Chinese to learn their mother tongue in schools and does not address economic, social or religious issues which he claimed was what Muhyiddin seemed to imply.
“More importantly, Bumiputera rights are already supported by various government policies and institutions, such as MARA (Majlis Amanah Rakyat), a government agency established to facilitate Bumiputera education, business, and entrepreneurship,” Lim stated.
“As a former prime minister, Muhyiddin had the authority and opportunity to enhance MARA’s effectiveness. Did he take any steps to make it work better? If MARA has shortcomings, why didn’t he address them during his tenure?”
Lim was responding to the Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairman’s proposal that an “umbrella body” for groups championing Malay-Bumiputera rights be formed.
Speaking during a press conference after delivering his policy speech at Bersatu’s AGM in Shah Alam on Saturday (Nov 30), Muhyiddin said the proposed body will ensure better structure and impact of efforts initiated by Malay-Bumiputera groups.
“Rather than proposing something new and unnecessary, Muhyiddin should clarify which Bumiputera rights remain unfulfilled. What gaps in MARA’s efforts need to be addressed?” Lim said.
“These are the types of questions he should have raised in Parliament and worked on while in office. Proposing vague new initiatives without tackling existing issues is unhelpful and detracts from real solutions.”
More symbolic than practical
Echoing Lim, Indian-based party Urimai chairman Prof P. Ramasamy said Muhyiddin’s call for Malay NGOs unity appears more symbolic than practical and is aimed at shoring up Bersatu’s political standing rather than addressing substantive issues.
He said while Chinese non-governmental organisations (NGOs) had banded together under Dong Zong in response to perceived threats to their cultural and language rights, the context for Malay NGOs to unite under an umbrella body is vastly different, thus making such unity “unlikely and potentially irrelevant” to PN’s political goals.
Ramasamy went on to note that Muhyiddin had overlooked the fact that Chinese NGOs had unified under “circumstances of existential threat to their identity, culture and language”, pointing out that Chinese organisations had fiercely protected these rights, viewing them as “under constant threat from a Malay-dominated government”.
“This collective response was less about political allegiance and more about safeguarding cultural survival,” he added.
“Malay NGOs, on the other hand, exist within an entirely different paradigm. As the dominant ethnic and cultural group in Malaysia, Malays face no comparable existential threat.
“This lack of urgency undermines the likelihood of uniting under a single banner. Muhyiddin’s attempt to draw parallels between the Chinese and Malays disregards these contrasting realities.” – Dec 2, 2024
Main image: The Rakyat Post
