On June 22, 2002, Malaysia’s 76-year-old Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad dropped a political bombshell in the midst of the three day national conference of the ruling United Malays National Organisation (UMNO). One hour into his closing speech, Mr. Mahathir suddenly announced that he was immediately resigning all his party and government positions.
He burst into tears and cried like a baby, as delegates, including Iron Lady Rafidah Aziz rushed to the stage, crying “Why, Why”. A sobbing Mahathir could be heard saying – “No, I have decided. I have decided.” Although shocking, many thought it was nothing but a melodrama, as the political party was well known of staging. But he was adamant about quitting.
Days earlier, the prime minister expressed regret over his failure to change the mindset of Malay Muslims, whom he slammed as complacent, incompetent and ungrateful. Mahathir said he had tried everything – from pleading to praying to crying, in trying to jolt the community from what he called a “culture” of extravagance and taking the easy way out.
In an interview, he said – “This is our culture. We do not know what hardship is, we only want things to be easy. I have tried to be an example, tried to teach, scolded, cried and even prayed. But I have failed. I have failed to achieve the most important thing – how to change the Malays. The Chinese in Malaysia have no special rights, they experience discrimination. But they are more successful than us.”
After 16 years since Mahathir quit UMNO and slammed the Malays, he has spoken again. At his newly created party Bersatu’s (Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia) second anniversary celebration at the Malawati Stadium on Saturday night, Mahathir, now 93 years old, has condemned the Malays again – calling the community “lazy and untrustworthy”.
The world’s oldest prime minister said among the failings of the Malays is their unwillingness to work hard and having a lackadaisical attitude to their own responsibilities. According to the New Straits Times, Mahathir unleashed his frustration at the Malays – “We accuse others. We accuse the government, accuse other races. When we fail, they are at fault. We are never wrong.”
He lectured the Malays – “Where are our faults? There are many. The first is we do not work as hard as others. Not only that, we also do not pay attention to our responsibilities. We don’t pay attention before deciding to do something. We lack mastery of the knowledge and information needed to make good decisions. I dare to say that we are lazy. We like to hand over our jobs to other people.”
Mocking the Malays as lazy wasn’t the worst part. The worst part was when Mahathir labelled the Malays’ attitude of being “untrustworthy” and for not having a sense of responsibility for tasks entrusted to them, as well as their tendency to break promises. The Malay community, he said, would not thing twice about taking things or money that do not belong to them.
The Malaysian leader said – “When we owe someone, it’s hard to pay back. Take the PTPTN (National Higher Education Fund Corporation). It’s not much that we need to pay back, just a little. We can afford it. Even if we only make RM2,000 a month, what’s RM100 a month? Only five per cent. But even those who earn more than that don’t pay. Stingy.”
“Whatever excuses we give, the fact is we don’t pay our debts. To us, it’s a small matter. But to other races, it erodes their trust in us. PTPTN debtors owe RM36 billion, almost the same as the stolen 1MDB (1Malaysia Development Bhd) funds,” – he said. As a result, banks no longer want to lend to Malays, which has led to many Malay traders unable to secure capital.
Love him or hate him, Mahathir is perhaps the only Malay-Muslim leader left who dares to slam, mock and even insult his own community for being lazy and untrustworthy. If a non-Malay leader were to say the same thing about the highly sensitive Malay race in the country, all hell will break loose and blood will flow on the street. A bloody riot will definitely start.
Not even prime-minister-in-waiting Anwar Ibrahim would dare criticize his own community at the scale Mahathir had done, for obvious reason. However, unlike Anwar Ibrahim who loves to be praised and lack the courage to call a spade a spade, a strong and decisive Mahathir isn’t too afraid about Malay voters getting offended for being labelled lazy and untrustworthy.
Between the year he quit in 2002 and this week, this isn’t the second time that Mahathir has criticised the Malay-Muslim, and it will certainly not be the last. In 2014, he insulted the Malays, saying they do not feel ashamed of failures anymore. He said the Malays would become “Mat Rempit” (Malay motorcycle gang members) when they failed.
He had earlier mocked the Malays students – “I am ashamed when I see the Chinese students studying three different languages, but still have a better grasp of the English language compared with their Malay peers. The Malays study two languages, Bahasa Malaysia and English, but they keep saying ‘all right, that is enough, no need to learn English any more’.”
Mahathir, perhaps confused with what had happened to the Malay race, also commented – amusingly – “In the past, when a Malay was sentenced to jail, the offender would hang his head in shame as it was not something to be proud of … But today, when a Malay is sentenced to jail, the offender will walk with his head proudly in the air, smiling as if he has achieved something.”
But the most dramatic event which had made the old man mad was when he experienced for himself the dishonesty of fellow Malays. He said – “Now I have a bakery. I want to say honestly, I am ashamed because among the Malay, Chinese or Burmese or any other workers, the Malay ones sometimes when they see money, they forget themselves, they become dishonest.”
He revealed he was forced to sack many of his Malay staff working in “The Loaf”, his Japanese-inspired bakery, for swindling money. Apparently, his bakery business suffered a mini scandal when the daily collection was not deposited into the bank. A Malay manager was then caught red-handed stealing money from the cash register and the incident infuriated Dr Mahathir.
Mahathir shared his sobbing story – “I am operating a bakery and have given many opportunities to Malays to hold management positions. Unfortunately, time and time again, honesty and integrity appear to be lacking as there have been staff who keep stealing money. They do not seem to understand that it is wrong to take what is not theirs. They do not think of the big picture or the long term.”
Because the Malays lack honesty and integrity, hence, Mahathir justified why he was forced to give contracts to the ethnic Chinese – “We have to be trustworthy so people will give contracts to us. When we want to give contracts, we give to the Chinese instead because we know they will do their work properly. This is our weakness – not being trustworthy.”
Without him realizing it, the Malay manager’s trustworthiness was the least he should be concerned of. He was left speechless when his protégé Najib Razak turned out to be the biggest crook under his watch. Mahathir hadn’t expect an elite Malay-Muslim like Najib, the son of the country’s second Prime Minister Abdul Razak Hussein, would take trustworthiness to a new level.
As early as January this year, just four months before the May 9th nationwide election, Mahathir slammed the Malays for being less committed to work, not hardworking and at times, not trustworthy. Speaking at his Vision 2020 Forum, he said – “I believe the Malays have the same capabilities as the Europeans and the Japanese. But, the Malay culture remains a problem.”
To be fair, of course, not all Malays are lazy and steal money whenever they have the chance. Those Malays who sell “nasi lemak” in a Chinese-dominated “pasar (market)” demonstrate a more hardworking and possesses more honour attitude than former premier Najib Razak. In the same breath, not all ethnic-Chinese are hardworking and honest.
Unfortunately, the lazy and untrustworthy Malays constitute the majority of the community. On the other hand, only a minority of the Chinese belong to the same despicable group. Therefore, the Chinese are seen as hardworking and honest while the Malays give the bad image as nothing but a bunch of lazy and untrustworthy people.
Adding insult to the injury, the Malays make up 68.8% of the Malaysian population, making them the biggest group of lazy, if not untrustworthy, race in the country. Hence, it only makes sense that Mahathir consistently mocks and insults the same community he represents as being the most complacent, incompetent and ungrateful people.
Yet, it’s quite amazing and puzzling that while Mahathir acknowledges – even condemns – the Malays of being lazy and untrustworthy, he continues to pour fuel into the fire – promoting special privileges in commerce and education for the community that seems forever hungry for handouts and freebies. His racism policy and refusal to promote meritocracy were part of the problems.
Other Articles That May Interest You …
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- Mahathir Should Leverage His Popularity To Promote Meritocracy – NOT Racism – For The Sake Of The Malays
- China Geely Introduces Meritocracy – But Handicapped Proton “Bumiputeras” Aren’t Happy
- Robert Kuok – How Chinese Become Amazing Economic Ants Despite Poverty & Discrimination
- China Invasion – Top 10 American Iconic Brands Now Owned By Chinese
- Bandar Malaysia Has Become “Bandar China” – The U.S. & Malays Conned By Najib
- The Best Proof That Malays Are Lazy, Dishonest & Know No Shame?
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September 9th, 2018 by financetwitter
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Comments
^ In reply to Jeff, you clearly didn’t spend time reading the whole article thoroughly. Dr. M clearly indicated that not all Chinese are hardworking, but only a *small fraction* of all Malaysian Chinese is lazy and dishonest; whereas as compared to Malays, a *vast majority* of them are lazy, untrustworthy, steal, complacent, incompetent, and ungrateful. You can refer to the quotes below if you’re lazy (oh, the paradox):
“On the other hand, only a minority of the Chinese belong to the same despicable group (lazy, untrustworthy, steal, complacent, incompetent and ungrateful etc.).”
“In the same breath, not all ethnic-Chinese are hardworking and honest.”
As for discrimination, there’d be no racial discrimination to even begin with if ketuanan melayu was not established back in the days. One can only handle so much irony from the Malay race for so long.
I think there is truth in what Mahathir says. My brother paid back all his PTPTN loan while his Malay friend (En. Y) said he wouldn’t want to pay back, arguing and self-convince that it is his RIGHT to be given free education by quoting Malaysian Constitution. Meanwhile, the government is soft towards the Malays who generally do not pay back their PTPTN loans.
Yes, other non-Malay and non-Bumi races are facing discrimination in many forms. They have special rights which were translated to many injustice and apartheid practices like 5-7% when they buy houses, get a rebate for the zakat paid (when Christians also pay tithe or zakat but no rebate like the muslims), special substandard pre-university courses as compared to non-Malays & the substandard results are considered equivalent to the STPM which is more difficult and it’s recognised by Cambridge & Oxford.
The cry, that Malays should follow the true teaching of Islam is not new. It has been repeated ever since the demise of the Prophet.
Today, the cry is heard once more; yet, none is able enough to develop and expound which road that can lead the Malays to the true teaching of Islam.
At the moment, PDRM has arrested several scores of Malays IS, and there are hundreds more being enlisted as IS fighters. These fighters are said to be on the wrong teaching of Islam.
However, if they were given the freedom to explain; they would swear by the holy Quran that they are not only following the true teaching of Islam, but also practicing the genuine Islam. This is because the Quran has several choices and orders to suit the place and the event.
It is very surprising that in spite of the vast numbers of Ulama and scholars in the world today, none of them has been to the fore to talk with the IS fighters.
In Malaysia, Ulama and Islamic scholars are busy making themselves the laughing stock of their audiences.The more audience they draw, the more are their fees.
They have completely failed to lead the Malays to the true teaching of Islam. They failed to assist the governments in preventing Malays from joining the IS fighters.The authorities should stop these Islamic scholars. Their lectures seem to bear no significant conclusion.
The true teaching of Islam is not the five precepts, neither the wearing of the garbs, nor the adoration of any individual; but, to understand thy own self. Learning to understand the self, gives one a “Makam” or a position that will release one of the fetters of society and critic.
Today Malays do not have the “makam” much less understand its spiritual significance. They are critical of anyone who does not conform to them; and they have alienated the God of the Universe as their own belongings.
Surely, there are Malays out there, can see that people everywhere look down on Muslims, and their belief not only bring them misery and misfortune but also to the world.
What the Malays need today is not the religious lecturer, whose entire subject is about the dark ages. The Malays need leaders who will bring them civil liberties and self-confidence, good books and excellent teachers.
The takeaway from this article is this :
“Yet, it’s quite amazing and puzzling that while Mahathir acknowledges – even condemns – the Malays of being lazy and untrustworthy, he continues to pour fuel into the fire – promoting special privileges in commerce and education for the community that seems forever hungry for handouts and freebies. His racism policy and refusal to promote meritocracy were part of the problems.”
We all know Mahathir can plead and implore to the Malays, can beg and whine at them, and eventually in great frustrations, openly condemn and scold them. But all to no avail. Why is this not working ?
This is because of Cakap Tak Serupa Bikin. Mahathir at core is also not brave enough or have the gonads to be like Lee Kuan Yew or even Duterte. He lashes out in fury but at the same breath, dishes out even more freebies, more money, more tongkats and more golden wheelchairs, albeit with consoling words like ‘with transparency, more checking’ so that the more ‘deserving’ Malays this time will get the handouts.
So let’s not have too much hope of the this so-called Malaysia Baru. It might not be as deplorable and hopeless like under Umno the past 5 decades or more, but perish the thought that a new sparkling democracy will be in place at time soon.
Yet ASN was given to them. There is no need to work hard. While the nons get a mere 3.8% interest on FD, they get abt 13%. For every 3.88 sen that we get they are given rm10 more. Who started ASN.?
It is like a parent scolding the grown-up children regularly for being irresponsible, spendthrift, lazy, aimless and jobless. Nevertheless ample financial support is always given to them. So why would they want to change? I won’t.
incidentally we have the same problem in the oil-rich Kingdoms, like Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Brunei.
2 things that make malays have no goal in their life. They don’t know their root history due to colonists have destroyed it, orientalists have been corrupting and UMNO itself never had initiative to dig back your true grassroot. 60 years, you had chance to fix back the malay history but you just robbed the money among you. The 2nd reason is malays dont practice and properly understand their perfect religion, islam. It has Al Al quran and Al hadis, guidelines about sin and reward, effort, independence nation etc. But malays fail to find their strength through both……
Do you know why the Chinese are handling the economies of this country? This is not about the fault of your Malays people because every Chinese are being born and practiced to love their money and properties. Money is the part of Chinese life culture. Most of the Chinese New Years songs are related to “money”. Most of the lyrics in the Chinese New Years song are all sing for blessing every Chinese to get richer than last year. We will harder to survive in this country if we don’t work hard to earn more money. That’s why we need to screw out our mind to think out any methods to earn more money. In the Chinese community, our life will be more secured if our bank account got stack up more money. Some of them are thinking bad side. Some Chinese are trying to become scammer to cheat people money and some of them become a loan shark, some of them are turned to become members of gangland. In the end, every Chinese just only got one target, which is “money”.
While we lashes out at the Malays for being lazy and untrustworthy, his prescriptions of medicine was the sole reason why he is spoiling them just as we parents spoil our kids when we continue to fuel their bad habits. He forgot the axion that stupidity is doing the same thing over again over 63 years and expecting a different result. He has just given the civil servant a big fat bonus of almost RM1 billion to celebrate their coming Hari raya. It is time to teach finanancial literacy and integrity in school education if he has the courage and revamp the whole government. The old medicine prescribed by the doctor is not going to work.
The answer lies in the education system?
My malay friends/schoolmates from the 60’s n 70’s
dont seem to hav this culture! Who changed the edu system in the mid 70’s n for what reason? Who is going to admit their mistake? Nobody, I guess cos if we were to look east, they will have to commit ‘Harakiri’ for the generations lost to handouts n not able to ‘berdikari’. Very sad.
As if the Chinese don’t practice discrimination. As if the Chinese don’t lie, bribe, dishonest, manipulate, cheat, lazy, steal. Mahathir is just saying that to say Malays need to hold on to him to save them.