Equity ownership alone is not a true measure of economic success, said economist Barjoyai Bardai of Universiti Tun Abdul Razak.

He said: “Do not be carried away with the 30% target or on the numbers but focus on a bigger objective, which is the participation of all Bumiputeras in the economic sectors.”

He also believed it would be hard for Malaysia to enjoy significant economic growth if it remained with the same economic plan. “The time has come for the government to come up with a new model plan based on the current paradigm.”

He said only the first three of Malaysia’s five-year plans could be considered successful, those for the period between 1966 and 1980.

“The rest were just stabilisers and a continuation of previous plans. They look similar, with only minor changes.

“The government is just emulating the previous plan and this continuous approach creates a linear projection in our economic growth. Malaysia has been in linear growth for more than 20 years.

“This 12MP comes at the most opportune time because the global economy is facing a downward trend, which is why we should set a higher target. If not, we will be charting a low growth for the next five years and be left behind.”

Political economist Firdausi Suffian of Sabah UiTM said the real issue was how Bumiputera policies had been implemented.

“I believe the Bumiputera-based policies have not been properly implemented and some people have abused the privileges. This is why the equity ownership target cannot be reached,” he told FMT.

The people who controlled the policies had created a patronage system that only benefited the rich Bumiputeras. “This system does not benefit the majority of the Bumiputeras, especially the poor ones. We need to change the system.”