“BUSINESS is colour blind.”
“Race and religious sentiments cannot sustain a business.”
“Price and quality of service are what matter most.”
These seem to be the prevailing opinions that greeted the news that the much trumpeted Malakat Mall in Cyberjaya is to cease operations at the at the end of this month.
Alongside the also-struggling Mara Digital Mall, Malakat Mall was set up to spearhead the Buy Malay First (BMF) campaign. Both malls were to provide retail opportunities to Bumiputera entrepreneurs and serve the Malay-Muslim demographic.
That the former is teetering on collapse while the latter has thrown in the towel, just months after its launch in Nov last year, is a damning indictment of this blinkered approach that sought to translate racist attitudes and religious bigotry into commercial success.
This is alongside attempts by popular Muslim preachers to break into the convenience store business. Controversial firebrand Firdaus Wong’s MyKamoung Freshmart operations could not be sustained, while another popular preacher Ebit Liew’s Elewsmart also shared a similar fate underlining it is not as simple as labelling a business as “Muslim-owned” that will draw in customers.
The news was widely shared on social media, with many netizens giving their two sen’s on this latest failed BMF venture.
Some were scathing in calling out Malakat Mall for what it was.
A few netizens lamented that this was just another in a long line of failed government-backed schemes that have done nothing but burden the taxpayer.
One netizen pointedly remarked that this was proof that the Malay demographic was not swayed by racial and religious sentiment.
Another example is using this example to question the claim that was being spouted by the pro-BMF brigade, ie that the Malay-Muslim demographic collectively had the biggest purchasing power and could initiate change with selective boycotts. He said playing on such sentiments does not work in the realm of business.
More than a few netizens highlighted that what mattered most to consumers were ‘price’ and ‘quality of service’, not race or religion of vendors.
With one going so far as to accuse these BMF businesses of cheating rather than assisting their brethren.
These online remarks reflect the reality of business. Attempts to use race and religion to secure entrepreneurial success are misguided.
Many citizens have said that to succeed in melting pot Malaysia, businesses need to be ‘inclusive’, not the opposite. The many failed examples are proof that this blinkered approach does not work.
One netizen summed up this latest news with a cheeky observation that no one literally died with this latest closure, though the many retailers and stakeholders may beg to differ. – July 20, 2024
