The Straits Times said the New Economic Policy (NEP), introduced in 1971, had led to “a sense of entitlement” among many Malays and their leaders.
Although Abdul Razak Hussein, who was prime minister at the time, said the policy would end in 1990, the report said 27 years later, no end was in sight.
This is despite research from Khazanah Research Institute last October showing that the Indian community, not the Malays, had the worst upward mobility.
The report also warned of the “Chinese bogeyman”, quoting Centre for Policy Initiatives chief executive Lim Teck Ghee who told the daily that the alleged threat was trotted out so that the “gravy train” for Umno’s political elite “keeps chugging along”.
This is because the Chinese community has continued to enjoy better salaries and more personal wealth despite the success of the NEP, which has helped grow the Malay middle class.
“To its critics, the NEP has been hijacked today by well-connected Malay politicians and their friends to enrich themselves,” the report said.
It added that the policy could end up being a “crutch” for the Malays, contributing to the “subsidy mentality” and weakening the resolve of Bumiputeras to succeed on their own.