He said the 30% goal is not an effective way to judge Bumiputera participation in the economy because the definition is narrow and is not reflective of the whole picture.

Addressing the Bumiputera economic conference here today, Rafizi said the country should look instead into Bumiputera investment practices, economic participation and management control in private firms.

“If we look at it from a broader perspective, the Bumiputeras’ achievements are quite impressive, but there are companies seen as Bumiputera because the CEO and president downwards are all Bumiputeras.

“Yet, on paper, they are not Bumiputera (companies) because they are GLCs,” he said.

He said equity ownership does not mean management control as a CEO might only have a 2% share, yet is able to control the company.

Rafizi said the Bumiputera community should transition to private ventures and entrepreneurship for better wealth creation, which would lead the country beyond the middle-income status.

“Although the challenges we face are large, we can look at the positive outcomes from the NEP. It has created a large group of middle-class Bumiputeras. We now have a large talent pool.

“We have already reached middle-income status. However, if we follow past policies that encourage Bumiputeras to open small factories or businesses, we won’t be able to compete with the world,” he said.

He said most of the Bumiputeras in the middle-class bracket are employees, especially those who prefer to work in GLCs and the public sector. However, this will stagnate growth.

“Non-Bumiputeras will usually venture out after a few years of earning a salary and create more wealth, which enlarges the economic pie. The difference becomes huge when it’s multiplied by (the number of non-Bumiputera citizens),” he said.

In September last year, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim was reported to have said the government will adopt a more meaningful approach towards the 30% equity goal, which has yet to be achieved more than five decades after it was introduced.