What Najib had learnt about China

Wrapping up his four-day visit of China, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak was certainly upbeat and passionate about the rising China and the strengthening of Sino-Malaysian relationships. According to Najib, it was an eye-opener for many reasons and many ways.

Najib was impressed by the rapid changes and the single-mindedness of the Chinese in their pursuits for development, their focus and pragmatism which he believes Malaysians could learn.

In his assessment, Najib said "one has to see for oneself how the Chinese succeeded in making China an economic juggernaut to really comprehend the full meaning of it".

“China is changing and changing fast. The China today is a new China. China’s economy could overtake the United States by 2050 or earlier if it was to grow at the rate of 8%,” Najib said.

According to Najib, Malaysia can and should learn from the Chinese to accelerate development.

Firstly, the Chinese are very focused with whatever they want to achieve. Once they set their goals, nothing else matters. Najib enunciated the late Chinese leader Deng Xiao Peng famous philosophy:

“It does not matter whether it is a white or black cat; as long as it can catch the mouse, it is a good cat.”

To Najib, this is the essence of pragmatism.

Secondly, China believes in young people and they invest in human capital development, especially high-tech industries.

Najib believes that Malaysia must do likewise as we need their new ideas and creativity if we are to be successful.

The Star concluded that in a nutshell, this is the message Najib wants to sent to all Malaysians.

Najibs foresight is beyond apprehension. But, would what he preach, could it be possible to get them implemented in Malaysia? Let's look at various challenges:

1) The essence of pragmatism

In Najib's opinion and his illustration of pragmatism, "as long as the cat can catch the mouse, it is a good cat." What will that mean in the Malaysian context? Take the case of Malaysian Airline System (MAS) as a case study. To apply this philosophy, it means that MAS must select the best person to helm the institution, and it does not matter what is the color of his skin and his nationality. In juxtaposed, UMNO Youth Leader and Education Minister UMNO Datuk Hishamuddin said the proposed appointment of a foreigner to lead the nationally-owned carrier by Khazanah could be likened to allowing the country to be recolonised, albeit in a new manner. “Don’t look at it from the commercial aspect but (we) should look at the bigger agenda, that is the Malay Agenda,” Hishamuddin said.

Do we see a total different ideology? Both of which is enunciated by UMNO - one from the deputy UMNO President and the other from UMNO Youth President. Isn't it a clash of ideology and a Conundrum? What it goes to show without doubt is that UMNO knows what is good for Malaysians and what is needed to achieve national development, but it is unable to apply the knowledge because of it's need to sustain the political support from the masses to keep it in power. Any acts that could cause a radical change and a possible removal of clutches from the political Bumi-acolytes who are beneficiaries of the rent-seeking system will cause certain disruptions and resistences within UMNO.

2) Malaysian Human Capital Development vs Malay Human Capital Development

In Najib's second point, he highlighted that China are currently investing in human capital development, especially high-tech industries. Najib believes that Malaysia must do likewise as we need their new ideas and creativity if we are to be successful.

Again, we have to look at the juxta-position of UMNO. The Johor Umno Liaison Committee under the leadership of Johor's Chief Minister Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman had criticised the meritocracy system introduced by the Malaysian government, blaming that it resulted in a fall in the achievement of Malay students and that the semi-meritocratic system of admission of students is a form of discrimination and oppression as it had resulted in a fall in the number of Malay students in medicine, engineering, pharmacy, dentistry and other competitive fields. He said the system had prevented the entry of Bumiputera and non-Bumiputera students into public institutions of higher learning based on the 55:45 ratio as used in the quota system.

Do you believe it? Meritocratic system is discriminatory and oppressive? What type of oxymoron do we have in Malaysia, especially so when that statement is made by a Chief Minister who is a university graduate and was a lecturer himself before he shot to political supremacy, and who is married to a professor who is a dean in the Public University.

On the 23rd Sept 2004, The Star highlighted that WANITA UMNO has identified a new “Malay dilemma” that will affect the younger generation should they continue to ignore the importance of knowledge. Its chief Datuk Seri Rafidah Aziz said “knowledge poverty” would definitely be the new Malay dilemma if the younger generation lagged behind in their studies and failed to give priority to acquiring knowledge. She said poverty in knowledge would eventually marginalise young Malays from the mainstream of development, hence reducing their ability to be creative and innovative.

Again, on 27th Sept 2004, in The Star news article: Advancing the Malay Agenda - Change of mindset vital for success; Education Minister, Hishamuddin had this to say:

“Unless there is a guarantee of a level playing field, Malays will never be able to compete fairly.” What sort of level playing fields is Hishamuddin refering to? The acceptance of admission of Malay students to Public universities and the scholarships awards were already one-sided and lop-sided in the Malays' favor; how is it that Hishamuddin and his deputy in UMNO Youth, Khairy Jamaluddin could still claim that the Malays are not playing in a level field? Paradoxically, it should be the reverse. If the rural schools which do not have appropriate amenities and facilities were the reasons of the rural Malays weakness in their education, then it is no fault of the commoners, especially the non-Malays. It should be the fault of the State Government of which Ghani is the chief minister, and he should take the full responsibility for the failures.

Meanwhile, at the UMNO General Assembly in July 2005, UMNO Youth deputy chief and the Prime Minister's only son-in-law, Khairy Jamaluddin was cheered by the delegates as he called for a return of the New Economic Policy (NEP) and this loud and open call was no longer a hidden agenda or something only in spirit and soul.

In Khairy assertion, he said this should be the basis for the country's economic planning in the coming Ninth Malaysia Plan with no shame or excuses. “No need to hide. This is the Malay agenda. We want 30% equity for the bumiputras so that they will be on par with the other races.”

How does Khairy propose to get the 30%? Burgle? Steal it? Rob Paul and Peter and Ah Chong? Or, earned it by hard work? If what Khairy is enunciating is about hardwork, then the need for NEP becomes irrelevant. The NEP is fundamentally a rent-seeking system, a system to give away national wealth without the need to work for it; a system that legalized theft, robbery and burglary of others' property and wealth ownership, in the name of economic wealth distribution for the oligarchs, and the assertion that Malays do not have a level playing field was used as the basis to cry for more hand-outs and the extensive exercise of cronyism and nepotism ideology.

Is that what Khairy wants? Then, Najib's philosophy of hardwork, competencies, and single-mindedness in pursuit for economic development, focus and pragmatism which he believes Malaysians could learn, is obsolete and redundant. Ironically, this was the same philosophy enunciated by Khairy's father-in-law, the current Prime Minister of Malaysia but seemingly, a follower to his S-I-L.

It goes back to the fundamental basics - Cakap Tak Boleh Serupa Bikin! which literally means, "Do what I tell you to do; Not what I do!

In summation, the hypothesis is affirmative of the doctrine of Malaysia-Boleh!