Lending A Helping Hand

I must say that the overwhelming amount of politically motivated racially-biased rhetoric being generated by the UMNO General Assembly has dulled my ability to make coherent responses myself. Hence I've decided not to dwell with the specifics of whatever the delagates raise. But there has been one point which I found "recurring" throughout, which was raised by many parties, whether radical or moderate.

I found it curious that in order to extend and entrench economic, social and political privileges to Malays, and more specifically to Malay politicians, the UMNO delegates will go to the far ends of the world to describe how weak in performance, poor in wealth and pitiful trailing the other communities and the rest of the world. It is almost as if without the Never Ending Policy, Malays will disappear from the face of the earth. And hence, according to Maulizan Bujang, Umno Johor delegate:

...the other races should understand and accept the Malay agenda with an open heart. Umno Johor believes that the Malays must be helped without the stipulation of an end to its (NEP) duration. It should also not be limited to just 30 percent but up to any amount.

Now, I'd put it very very simply. It is absolutely the last thing on my mind, and on the majority of the non-bumiputeras out there who are equally fair-minded, that the poor Malays should not receive extra assistance from the government and the community.

On the contrary, we want to specifically provide extra assistance and help to the poor Malays in the country, as well as the deserving poor of all other Malaysians. I'm personally more than happy to contribute from my personal finances based on whatever I can afford to meet that objective.

What we specifically object to, is to provide special privileges to the likes of Datuk Zakaria Mat Deros at my personal political, social and financial expense. Datuk Zakaria Mat Deros epitomises the typical UMNOputra who has the uncanny ability to somehow live way beyond his means. Why should Datuk Zakaria Mat Deros receive any favours from me, when he clearly already belongs to the wealthiest 1% in the country? Is there logic and justice in that?

We will lend more than a helping hand to poor Malays to ensure that they have a more than equal opportunity to prosper. But the Datuk Zakaria Mat Deros, and his brethen in UMNO, deserves no such hand.