FOR 66TH MERDEKA – MALAYSIANS WARN A WOBBLY ANWAR TO STAY THE COURSE – EVEN AS MAHATHIR WANTS TO ABOLISH VERNACULAR SCHOOLS WHILE UMNO WANTS ‘MALAYSIAN MALAYSIA’ STANCE TO BE DROPPED – ‘JUST BE THE PRIME MINISTER FOR ALL MALAYSIANS & DO WHAT IS RIGHT TO BRING MALAYSIA IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. IF THAT IS WHAT HE HAS DONE & THE MAJORITY OF MALAYS DON’T SUPPORT HIM, THEN SO BE IT. AT LEAST HE DID WHAT WAS RIGHT FOR MALAYSIA & MALAYSIANS’
Anwar: Stop sowing doubts, end racial and political hostility
Mazilamani: Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s speech was a fantastic reminder to those sowing seeds of fanatism, extremism, disunity and distrust.
It is important that the police act independently to do their work without approval from someone outside their department.
This country appears to be so divided racially and politically, which is not the right thing for the country.
Every Malaysian looks forward to good rule by this government after almost a generation plus years of misrule and misgovernance, and the last nail that hurt us most was under former premiers Muhyiddin Yassin and Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s governments.
We want the country to be racially, politically, and economically stable. We have been hurt most in body and mind in the last five years by floods, the Covid-19 pandemic and looting under the guise of three changes of governments. We want to move forward as Malaysians.
Siva1967: Yes, that was a very moving speech indeed. Now it is time to act on those who try to derail Malaysia’s journey towards greatness by using race and religion as their means to divide this nation.
There should be no compromise and most of all there should not be selective action. Action should be taken on anyone who sows hate along the 3R (race, religion and royalty) lines, regardless of which side of the aisle they are seated on or what their standing in society.
The writing is already on the wall that we are heading to a theocratic state and if programmes and policies are not implemented, we get no prize for guessing what Malaysia will look like in the coming years.
Just like any nation, we too have our own set of problems, but our potential if collectively harnessed cannot be rivalled at least within this region.
We have had a leadership drought for far too long and this has to end. I pray and hope that Anwar and his cabinet are committed to ending that drought.
If he practises what he so dearly preaches, the only way for Malaysia is up. The other option is too worrisome to even imagine.
Mat M Din: The rhetoric of using race and religion to uphold Malay honour and interests is no longer viable. Malay control and dominance in the civil service, armed forces and government-linked companies are well entrenched.
It does not need to be defended anymore.
Therefore, the focus now should be directed to the unity of the major ethnic groups to cooperate and work together to develop the country.
By working together, it could accelerate the economic growth of the country faster and turn the country more prosperous. The wealth of the country will grow bigger and everyone will be able to have a bigger share of the wealth.
As the level of economic growth is due to the effort of the full cooperation of all the communities, therefore, the wealth of the country has to be distributed equitably and fairly to all and sundry, not based on race.
After 60 years, the time has arrived to stop affirmative action based on race, it has to be based on needs.
As the Malays comprise the biggest group in the B40, more Malays will benefit compared to others when the wealth of the country is distributed based on needs.
Ryan Toh: Why does the prime minister deem it necessary to give assurance that the government is for all? Shouldn’t that be universally understood?
Gutter politics of race and religion are certainly destroying our wonderful country, Malaysia. Our unique diversity has blessed this beautiful land created by the convergence of historical events over the last 500 years.
This diversity is now being brutally and irresponsibly attacked on a daily basis by the political elites for power, the same lust for power that destroyed China in the past.
Do we have brave politicians with strong political convictions to turn things around? Frankly, my own poor eyesight does not see any within range.
Do we realise that while our politicians are still beating chests proclaiming which race actually owns the soil and which religion should have the dominant position over the way we live our lives, the rest of the world is moving forward?
We are at real risk of being left behind, or worse, being forced to our knees in humiliation just as China once was.
Be reminded, that once the lust for power had brought the country on its knees, it took more than a hundred years of struggle for the Chinese to stand up again.
Cogito Ergo Sum: In wishing the prime minister and his cabinet a Happy Merdeka, I hope he will turn back the pages and look at the foundations upon which this nation was built.
Equality, liberty, and freedom. Over the years, all these have been slowly eroded by the use of draconian laws which you promised to dismantle once in power.
But the very opposite is being practised. Books and watches are seized using these archaic laws. Talking up the people does not translate to what’s happening on the ground.
Pakatan Harapan is a better option than Perikatan Nasional, but by not much. While it is dangerous to consider the alternative, it’s becoming increasingly scary what’s happening on the ground. Address this first, please.
Multi Racial: Anwar cannot control what others will do or not do. He is now 76 years old and in four years time before the 16th general election, he will be 80.
Why not focus on doing the right thing? He won because of non-Muslim and moderate Muslim votes as well as support from East Malaysians who are generally moderate.
He should focus on those who voted for him and also doing what is right for the nation. Please don’t be like Dr Mahathir Mohamad, he is a failure and disappointment. Don’t play into the PAS narrative.
Just be the prime minister for all Malaysians and do what is right to bring Malaysia in the right direction. If that is what he has done and the majority of Malays don’t support him, then so be it.
At least he did what was right for Malaysia and Malaysians. MKINI
Abolish vernacular schools to reduce racial divide, says Dr M
The former prime minister also claims there are ‘certain races’ who refuse to enrol their children in national schools.
PETALING JAYA: Dr Mahathir Mohamad has called for vernacular schools to be shut down, describing it as the best way to reduce the racial divide.
Mahathir has been critical of the vernacular school system in the past, claiming that it has divided the country.
“One of the best ways to close the racial divide is through education, and among (the measures that can be taken is) abolishing vernacular schools,” Utusan Malaysia quoted the former prime minister as saying.
He also claimed there were “certain races” who refused to enrol their children in national schools as they were akin to religious schools.
However, he said, even if the situation improved in national schools, minorities would still avoid enrolling their children in them.
Mahathir, who has been harping on race-related issues of late, went on to claim that the “ethnic pendatang” did not want to mix with Malay students.
“They want to preserve their customs and culture, which includes their mother tongue, just like how it is in their motherland.”
He said in countries such as the US, UK and Australia, immigrants were accorded citizenship if they were proficient in English and embraced local culture.
“Take UK’s prime minister Rishi Sunak, for example, who is of Indian descent but speaks English that is indistinguishable from the locals.”
Mahathir is not alone in calling for the abolishment of vernacular education as his son, Mukhriz, had made a similar call back in March.
Mukhriz had said then that Malaysia must eliminate factors that divided the people, such as having vernacular schools, before the possibility of having a non-Malay becoming prime minister could be entertained.
Last year, a High Court in Kota Bharu ruled that vernacular schools were constitutional. FMT
Drop ‘Malaysian Malaysia’ slogan, Umno’s Nur Jazlan tells DAP
The Umno Supreme Council member says Malays are hesitant to support DAP because its secular state agenda ‘contradicts Islamic and Malay principles’.
PETALING JAYA: Umno Supreme Council member Nur Jazlan Mohamed has urged DAP to drop the “Malaysian Malaysia” slogan from its party constitution if it wants to gain the support of Malay voters.
Nur Jazlan said the Malays were hesitant to fully support DAP because of its secular state agenda, which “contradicts Islamic and Malay principles”.
He claimed that Malay voters in Selangor and Johor told him that they could not accept DAP’s political stance as they were made in the interest of the Chinese community.
However, they do not have the same views about MCA as the Barisan Nasional component party is not as “extreme”, and also because Umno is the dominant force in the coalition.
“If DAP remains hesitant to make substantial changes like the sacrifices Umno has made today, I expect DAP to continue to be shunned by Malay voters, and Umno will also be rejected by Malays as long as we cooperate with DAP,” he said in a Facebook post.
Nur Jazlan said another challenge DAP faced was PAS’ growing support among Malays, which may lead to a political scenario in which Chinese voters would continue to vote for DAP while Malays shift their allegiance to PAS.
To prevent that from happening, the former Pulai MP said DAP needed to become a moderate party that supported the Chinese community and could also be accepted by Malay voters.
“DAP needs to follow the successful formula of BN, which has proven to effectively champion Malay interests for over 60 years without neglecting the rights of non-Malay citizens.”
Umno suffered one of its worst electoral performances in the recent six state elections, winning only 19 of the 108 state seats it contested, following an equally dismal performance in the 15th general election last November.
This has led to calls for a change in the Umno leadership, particularly for party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to step down.
Umno Supreme Council member Isham Jalil also questioned the party’s alliance with DAP following Umno’s dismal performance at the polls.
Meanwhile, Nur Jazlan claimed that Umno has grown weaker over time because after being used as a punching bag by PAS, DAP, PKR and Bersatu, over the years.
“The ongoing propaganda to tarnish Umno’s image has led some Malay voters, especially the younger generation, to be easily influenced, developing negative perceptions of the party,” he added. FMT
MKINI / FREE MALAYSIA TODAY
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