2
Wrong to say it’s a
Malay govt: Tee Keat
KUALA LUMPUR: MCA
president Datuk Seri Ong
Tee Keat said it is wrong for
anybody, within or outside
the party, to say that the
government is a Malay
government.
Ong, who is also the
transport minister, said the
fact is that since the inception
of Malaya and then Malaysia,
the government has been
represented by the major races
in the peninsula as well as other
ethnic groups, including those
in Sabah and Sarawak.
He said Malaysia achieved
independence as a result of
concerted efforts and “we
manage to achieve what we
have today because of inter-
ethnic collaboration”.
“And this does not come
Ketuanan Melayu could
be misinterpreted: Koh
by Opalyn Mok
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
GEORGE TOWN: The term ‘ketu-
anan Melayu’ (Malay supremacy)
could be misinterpreted, and the
right terminology to use should
be from the Federal Constitution,
Gerakan president Tan Sri Dr Koh
Tsu Koon said yesterday.
Commenting on Datuk Seri
Dr Chua Soi Lek’s statement
on Thursday that the ketuanan
Melayu concept is no longer rel-
evant, Koh said the appropriate
words to use are “special position
of the Malays and bumiputras” as
written in the constitution.
“I am unsure of the effects of
using a word that is not in the
constitution as it can bring about
a different meaning and it could
be misinterpreted,” he said.
abruptly ... out of nowhere.
It is wrong to say that the
government is a Malay
government. I see no reason
why we need to continue
with the same old polemics
that could only pose us with
additional hurdles to cross,” he
told reporters after launching
the Community Cardio
Pulmonary Resuscitation
(CPR) programme of St John
Ambulance Malaysia here
yesterday.
“So, why must we put
ourselves in such a position?”
In Rembau later, Ong said
the MCA would forever uphold
the institution of the Malay
rulers, the Federal Constitution
and Rukunegara.
He said the issue of
‘ketuanan Melayu’ harped by
He said the word ‘ketuanan’
may give rise to the interpreta-
tion that there’s a ‘tuan’ (master)
and a ‘hamba’ (slave).
“So, the proper terminology
to be used should be from the
constitution where it is stated
that all the citizens’ rights are
protected,” he said.
Koh said Article 153 of the
Federal Constitution provided
for the special position of the
Malays and bumiputras and also
the legitimate interests of all the
other communities.
“The Federal Constitution
should form the basis for all this, so
there is no need to argue over it,”
he said at a press conference after
delivering his opening address at
the Gerakan Lifelong Members’
annual general meeting
On Gerakan, Koh said the
certain political leaders was
mere polemic and an outdated
issue.
“There are so many news
reports and statements, as
well as hard-hitting criticisms
and wild accusations over the
issue. And if we read them, we
could feel hurt. Issues like this
have no ending,” he said at the
ground-breaking ceremony for
the SJK(C) Yuk Hua hall.
“Each community has
its edge and is duty-bound
to learn from this. In this
context, the different races in
Malaysia should complement
each other because in today’s
world, racial conflicts or rifts
could jeopardise the country’s
competitiveness at the global
level,” he said.
However, he said, talking
ual general meeting
Koh addresses the ann
left is former party pre
Members. Third from
Yaik.
central committee held its second
meeting on Saturday, during which
Datuk Lim Kheng Guan and Dr
Asharuddin Ahmad were sworn in
theSun | MONDAY DECEMBER 1 2008
I see no reason why we
need to continue with the
same old polemics that
could only pose us with
additional hurdles to cross.”
about sensitive issues did not
mean that race relations in
Malaysia were fragile. “I don’t
see it as dangerous as long as
the intention is not to cause
turmoil in society and that we
do not compete with each other
in an unhealthy way.”
Ong said the ‘ketuanan
Melayu’ issue was actually not
new as it was talked about by
political leaders since 1986
and each individual had his or
her own interpretation of the
concept.
“But whatever race we
are, we should not just win
the applause,” he said, adding
that the MCA rejected the
dominance of one race over the
others in whatever form as the
latter would feel marginalised
or sidelined. – Bernama
MASRY CHE ANI/THESUN
g
of the Gerakan Lifelon
sident Tun Dr Lim Keng
as the two appointed central committee
members, and Datuk Gooi Hoe Kin as the
deputy speaker of the National Delegates
Conference.
Deputy Minister of Plantation Industries
and Commodities and central committee
member Kohilan Pillay was appointed a
vice-president to fill the vacancy left by the
late Datuk Dr S. Vijayaratnam.
Najib and Dr M on
Aljazeera
PETALING JAYA: Deputy Prime Minister
Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak and Tun
Dr Mahathir Mohamad will appear live
on Aljazeera’s Riz Khan show this week
and talk on the current political situation
in Malaysia and the implications of the
global economic crisis.
Najib will be interviewed at 10pm
today, and Mahathir also at 10pm on
Thursday.
Viewers may call in or e-mail ques-
tions to this interactive show. They may
e-mail riz@aljazeera.net or call in live to
the show at +1 202 275 2360.
On Wednesday, also at 10pm, Riz
Khan will chair a panel discussion on
Malaysian politics and culture which
will, among others, touch on the Inter-
nal Security Act (ISA). The three guests
are blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin and
playwrights Kee Thuan Chye and Jo
Kukhatas.
Those who wish may join the cha-
troom via livestation.com. Aljazeera
English is broadcast on Channel 513 of
Astro.
Riz Khan is in Kuala Lumpur for a
series of live interviews on the future of
Malaysia and the region as a whole.