Dr M: Never question the citizenship of the non-Malays

PETALING JAYA: The citizenship of non-Malays in the country should never be questioned, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said.

A provision in the Federal Constitution clearly stated that the Malays were the indigenous people of the country while the non-Malays had rights to citizenship, he said.

“That should not be questioned. The Constitution provides that you cannot take away citizenships,” he told reporters after opening the Malaysian Liver Foundation building at Ara Damansara here yesterday.

The former prime minister was asked to comment on alleged racist remarks made by Datuk Nasir Safar, a special officer to the Prime Minister, during a 1Malaysia seminar in Malacca.

“It is a very bad statement to make. Even if it is true, we don’t say things like that. They are in fact, the children of the people who came here. They have not just arrived,” said Dr Mahathir.

Johor Umno information chief Datuk Samsol Bahari Jamali said Nasir’s remarks did not reflect the views of Umno in any way.

He said Johor Umno always looked at ways to get everyone to work together and not hurt anyone’s feelings.

“I am shocked to hear it. He never struck me as a racist,” he said when contacted.

MIC vice-president Datuk Dr S. Subra­maniam said the immediate action taken by Najib indicated his seriousness and commitment in ensuring the success of the 1Malaysia policy.

“This should act as a deterent to ensure that similar statements are not repeated by any quarters,” he said in a statement.

Penang Gerakan chairman Datuk Dr Teng Hock Nan said the alleged racist remarks had aggravated the already high political tension in the country

Meanwhile, non-governmental organisation Perkasa came to Nasir’s defence.

Its president Datuk Ibrahim Ali said the remarks would have been harsher had it come from him (Ibrahim).

He said he understood why Nasir had made that statement.

Kelab Belia Graduan 1Malaysia also came to Nasir’s defence, saying his remarks were misunderstood and taken out of context.

Its deputy president Najieb Mokhtar said Nasir never intended to offend anyone.

“Only a small number of those present at the function took offence and left the hall,” he said, adding that he was also at the same seminar.

Tengku Razaleigh Using Opposition Platform Not Acceptable

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 2 (Bernama) -- Umno veteran Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah's using an opposition platform to state his stand on the oil royalty issue is not acceptable, said former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

He said this was because the former finance minister could have used a more suitable platform like a forum to put forward his views.

"I don't think it is acceptable, I must use other channels like a forum in order to voice out my views. He could have raised it with the Prime Minister," he told reporters after delivering an address entitled "Asean:Present and Future Challenges" at the 2010 Asean Logics Conference at the International Islamic University, Malaysia, here Tuesday.

Dr Mahathir said this when asked to comment on Tengku Razaleigh's action in stating that Kelantan was entitled to oil royalty at a PAS function held at the Sultan Mohamed IV Stadium in Kota Baharu recently, which was also attended by Kelantan Menteri Besar Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat.

"I think he gives Kelantan more priority than the government. As a Kelantanese (Tengku Razaleigh is the Member of Parliament for Gua Musang), you want to see Kelantan get its money," said Dr Mahathir.

Asked if Tengku Razaleigh's action would have an effect on Kelantan voters, Dr Mahathir said: "Perhaps, but in any case we (Barisan Nasional) will not be able to retake Kelantan because the Kelantanese have their own ideas."
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KUALA LUMPUR: Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has refrained from criticising Gua Musang MP Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah for using an Opposition platform to voice his opinion on the Kelantan oil royalty issue.

He said that he had also been critical of the Government in the past.

“I do not think it is acceptable to use the platform of the Opposition but I have also spoken out using smaller groups critical to the Government.

“I am not in a position to condemn,” he said when asked for his reaction to Tengku Razaleigh’s comment that the PAS-led Kelan-tan government was entitled to a 5% royalty for petroleum extracted off its waters.

Last Thursday, Tengku Raza-leigh, who is a former Finance Minister and founding chairman of Petronas, told a gathering in Kota Baru that Kelantan was entitled to the royalty.

Speaking to reporters yesterday after giving a talk at the Asean Logics Conference at International Islamic University, Dr Mahathir said he had been very vocal against some of the moves made during the administration of Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

Dr Mahathir said he was of the view that Tengku Razaleigh was placing greater importance to Kelantan compared to the Federal Government.

“I suppose as a Kelantanese, he wants to see Kelantan get money. I am only guessing,” he said.

Kelantan Umno Youth was upset that Tengku Razaleigh chose to make his stand at a gathering organised by the PAS-led government, where he shared the stage with Mentri Besar and PAS spiritual adviser Datuk Nik Aziz Nik Mat at the Sultan Mohammed IV Stadium in Kota Baru.

Asked if Tengku Razaleigh’s ac-tions would affect the voters confidence towards Umno, Dr Maha-thir said: “Maybe, maybe. But whatever we do, we cannot win back Kelantan. Kelantanese have their own way of thinking.”

In his speech, Dr Mahathir said that Asean countries, together with China, Japan and South Korea, should have a common trading currency in place of the US dollar.

He also renewed his calls for the formation of the East Asia Economic Group (EAEG) , which would boost economic solidarity among the 10-member Asean group with the three north-east Asian countries.

NGOs could decide election outcome: Dr Mahathir

By Sajahan Abdul Waheed

KUALA LUMPUR: Political parties should not belittle the roles played by non-governmental organisations, said former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad yesterday.

He said the voice of the non-governmental organisations could influence the results of the general election.

"In the last general election, the Malays felt their voices were not heard by the political parties be they from the government or opposition.

"So they resorted to airing their grievances through NGOs. That is why Umno did not fare well in the election," said Dr Mahathir when launching Pertubuhan Pribumi Perkasa Malaysia (Perkasa), near here.

Dr Mahathir said unlike before, Malays now were not afraid to protest openly.

He also hit out at political leaders who felt that the Malays had no choice but to support them.

"These leaders gave importance to winning over the non-Malays. They also made decisions which hurt their feelings."

Citing an example, Dr Mahathir said during the 1969 polls, he was confident of being able to retain his Kota Star Selatan parliamentary seat with the support of the Malays alone, but he was proven wrong when he lost to Pas candidate Yusof Rawa.

He said non-Malays should not question the special privileges enjoyed by the Malays and the Bumiputeras.

"They must remember that it was the Malays who agreed to give them citizenship previously. Maybe the earlier generation of non-Malays is thankful of that but the present generation has forgotten it.

"I am not a racist but I feel offended when I read an article recently (in a local publication) that there are no real Malays in the world and that Malays are actually immigrants (pendatang).

"I feel sad when Malays become weak, people throw all kinds of accusations at us."

Meanwhile, Dr Mahathir refused to comment on reports that during the Umno Youth meeting on Thursday, some executive council members had called on Khairy Jamaluddin to step down as head of the movement.

An Interview with Dr Mahathir

Access to information equals opportunities. With the Internet today, such access is almost limitless but only those who seize the opportunities will get ahead, says Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

IN a recent interview with Open University Malaysia (OUM), former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad shares his views on the challenges that educational institutions face and the direction they should take. He adds that immigration policies should be reviewed, as they stop the brains from coming in, but allow the uneducated to work here instead.

Below are excerpts from the interview.
Dr Mahathir believes that a lifelong learning habit begins with a love for reading.

Q: In some countries, going back to school is regarded as the norm. What are Tun’s views on lifelong learning? What does it take to encourage more Malaysians to participate in lifelong learning?

A: We gain knowledge through many sources, among which is, of course, reading. To participate in lifelong learning, one must first love learning and to love learning, one must first love reading.

Of course, we can also acquire knowledge through television but we cannot gain an education just by watching television alone. They say a picture paints a thousand words. Sometimes when you look at a picture, you see not just one but many thousands of words. However, understanding still may not come and so you do not produce.

Reading is different. It stays in your mind longer. You learn when you read. You learn not only the knowledge contained in the book but also the language, the way the book is written.

So, reading improves communication. A person who watches television cannot learn to communicate; a person who reads books can. And communication is one of the weaknesses in human society. The ability to convey your thinking to another person is a communication skill.

Through reading, the process of lifelong learning begins. Once you start reading, you cannot stop reading. Of course, the person who starts watching television also may not be able to stop watching it, but what he learns from television may not be good for him. But when he reads, even if it is only a story book, he will, at least, acquire the skill of communication.

Reading also improves your perception of things and trains you to analyse and understand complex matters. The more you read, the more you acquire the experience of others albeit through the eyes of a skilful observer. Even if you are reading a story book, your ability to solve problems increases because you have, at least, read about it.

I started reading when I was young. Books tell me what people will do in 10 years’ time, they tell me how people think, they predict trends… If you don’t read, you will be left behind.

To encourage lifelong learning, you must instil a reading culture. Lifelong learning starts with reading, and can become a habit, just like reading.

Q: The world is increasingly becoming a global village and more of our young people are working overseas. How can we turn this increased mobility of youth and talent to our nation’s advantage?

A: Globalisation is the trend today. But it aggravates the brain drain in Malaysia. To understand this, we need to look at our immigration policies, which were formulated in the 1950s when people could not travel easily.

We did not want people coming into the country then, so our policies stopped people coming in. We believed our people would not want to go out, so our policies did not stop them going out.

But today, the world has changed. It is now very easy to travel; it only takes about 20 hours to fly to the other side of the world. With this ease in travel, physical borders can no longer stop people from entering or leaving a country. So people go out, especially those with knowledge and skills. Other countries offer them high wages and we do not stop them, so they leave and we lose our best people.

At the same time, we have a policy which actually stops brains from coming in. But we also need workers, so we allow uneducated people to come in.

So, what we get is no inflow of brain but inflow of the brainless.

All this is because we are using an outdated immigration policy. We must remember that in future, all countries will have a multi-racial population. There won’t be a single-ethnic nation anymore. Five million of the people in France today are Algerians. England has many Indian restaurants. People will be moving around, either legally or illegally, and settling down where they like.

The only country that may not change is China, with its 1.3 billion people. People who go to China become Chinese. Kublai Khan conquered China and became Chinese. The Manchus conquered China and became Chinese. There are so many Chinese; you get diluted, the Chinese don’t.

To attract youth and talent, we need to change our policy to consider the mobility of youth and talent.

Q: What is the greatest challenge that higher education faces in the next decade? What opportunities should we look out for?

A: You cannot recognise challenges and opportunities unless you understand what is happening around you. That is where learning comes in — learning helps you to comprehend, analyse and tackle problems.

Globalisation is clearly a challenge. With globalisation, your knowledge widens and you learn to deal with things you may not otherwise be able to.

Take a person born in the kampung, for example. His knowledge of things is limited to what he sees there. Once he moves to the city, he sees and learns so much more. Everywhere in the world, people in rural areas are regarded as less capable, less savvy, less sophisticated. But with globalisation, the kampung boy can cross new frontiers, embrace new values, see new ways of doing things. Globalisation gives the kampung boy a new world to comprehend, new skills to develop, new relationships to handle. Those are tremendous challenges.

Opportunities are different. Opportunities are affected by our ability to access and classify information. In the past, when we did not have much access to information, our opportunities were limited. Today, with the Internet, we have access to information and plenty of facts, but we need to know how to classify and use these facts.

So today, we have the capacity but the problem is, how do we use this capacity? The people who are able to use this capacity will see the opportunities – Google, Yahoo... In the end, seeing opportunities and seizing them, it is all up to you.

Q: Technology is said to have liberalised and democratised education and we must compete on a global platform. How successful have our local public universities been in this respect?

A: Well, they are not too bad, but they are not too good either. University authorities need to reassess their roles. It’s not just a question of giving sufficient knowledge to students so that they can pass their exams.

Knowledge must be viewed in a wider context. In the hands of some people, knowledge can bring about harm. What I notice about our public universities is that not enough attention is given to human character development and nurturing value systems which can help students become useful people in society.

Without the right values, knowledge can even make someone a criminal. But if you are shaped by the education system to become someone useful in society, then education would have fulfilled the greater need. There is a need for universities to strike a balance between producing skilled knowledge workers and people with good moral values.

Q: What is Tun’s perception of world university rankings and the role of universities?

A: Our universities today are much more aware that they are not just institutions for imparting knowledge but also institutions for researching new knowledge. Unfortunately, some still don’t have that mindset. Universities need to understand that their function is not just to transfer knowledge but also to create new knowledge through research, and to write about it, through producing papers. That is a crucial role.

Rankings should be based on the type of universities. Of course, you cannot compare an open university with conventional universities. You will get different results because the criteria are not the same. That, I think, is not important. What is important for an open university is whether it can provide education for people who have missed the boat, and for as many people as possible without compromising on quality.

When I was a small boy, my teacher only passed Standard Four. Later, a teacher had to have secondary school qualifications. Today, even that is not enough. Entry qualifications keep getting higher. Later, we will need more people with doctorates. The progress of society is such that, over time, the level of knowledge increases. So there is always a need to upgrade skills and qualifications, and OUM has a clear role to play.

Q: What is your secret for staying so young?

A: Oh, I do my usual physical exercises and I enjoy horse riding. But I also read. It is something I have enjoyed since young. My father was very strict about reading. Everyday, when he got home from work, he would cough in front of the house and I’d rush to get a book to read so as not to get scolded. Besides, I can do other things when I am reading. That is good because I don’t like to waste time (smiles).

Mahathir: Umno not doing enough

KUALA LUMPUR: Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) championing Malay issues have mushroomed of late because there is a feeling among the Malays that Umno by itself is incapable of protecting them, said Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

“These NGOs have become more active because they seem to represent quite a number of Malay opinions,” said the former prime minister when commenting on the hardline position on Malay issues that was taken up by Pertu­buhan Pribumi Negara (Per­kasa), a Malay NGO led by politician Pasir Mas MP Datuk Ibrahim Ali.

On whether Perkasa was gaining more support, Dr Mahathir said: “They look like the biggest among the Malay NGOs. That means, it is the strongest but it is not as strong as Umno.”

Dr Mahathir is scheduled to launch the Selangor Perkasa tomorrow.

On why the Malay fight was more important than the Bangsa Malaysia fight as indicated in his talk at the National Library on History As A Learning Experience And An Invaluable Heritage earlier, he said that if the fight of the Malays were not made successful then the Bangsa Malaysia fight would also not be because the Malays formed the backbone as long as they were the majority.

“If they could not state their stand, other parties and races would also receive its negative effects,” he added.

In his talk, Dr Mahathir said many Malays did not know the country’s history and the fight of the Malays, questioning their own race by calling themselves “Malaysians”.

In responding to a question from the floor, he said that the mentality of the Malays had not changed.

“If they want to be rich, they will find the easiest way. If they can sell the country, they will, if they cannot, they will sell sand.”

Pakatan Rakyat Will Not Last

Says Tun Mahathir

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 27 (Bernama) - The Pakatan Rakyat coalition is a marriage of convenience that will not last long, former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad reiterated Wednesday.

"There is nothing in common between PAS, DAP and PKR. It is just a marriage of convenience and it will not last very long," he said after his visit to I-City here.

He was asked to comment on the friction between Kulim Member of Parliament Zulkifli Noordin of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and Shah Alam Member of Parliament Khalid Samad of PAS.

On the issue of a 29-year-old blogger being remanded for insulting the late Sultan of Johor, Sultan Iskandar Ismail, Tun Dr Mahathir, who is a blogger himself, said one should not unnecessarily say things that would not benefit anyone.

"Why use the blog to insult people and make accusations that you cannot back? I have more articles on my blog than most people. I don't think they will arrest me as yet," he said in jest.

Dr Mahathir said he was prepared to defend what he put in his blog.

I Am Not Anti-Christian Says Tun Mahathir

PENANG, Jan 23 (Bernama) -- Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has denied claims that he is trying to stir up anti-Christian sentiments by saying that the Sept 11, 2001 attack on the World Trade Centre in New York was staged.

"Many people may think that I am trying to stir up the matter by publicly commenting that the attack on the United States was staged but I am firm with my point of view," he told reporters after attending a dinner organised by the Penang Medical Practitioners' Society here on Saturday.

The former prime minister said there were groups of people who thought that he was trying to stir anti-Christian sentiments by commenting on the attack at this point of time.

"What do I gain from a publicity stunt? I'm not going to run for Prime Minister again."

Earlier in his blog, Mahathir said that he had watched a three-hour video showing the attack and suggested that the World Trade Center and surrounding buildings collapsed due to controlled demolition.

"A lot of people in America (the apologists will dismiss them as conspiracy theorists) questioned whether the towers collapsed because the planes crashed into them or that something else caused them to come down.

"These people have reproduced videos taken by media people showing the attack and the collapse of the towers, pointing out certain peculiar features.

"If you have seen the three-hour long video which is widely distributed you would be convince by it.

"People fear of saying anything political on this issue, especially when we are accusing the government of a very powerful country of doing something wrong.

"Don't forget they (even) told lies to go to war," he said.

On another note, Tun Mahathir said Malaysia should not solely depend on foreign direct investments (FDI) and should instead build up its own economy.

My 9/11 comment won't affect investment : Mahathir

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA - Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad believes that his statement that the 9/11 incident in the United States was staged would not hamper Malaysia's move to attract foreign direct investment.

"I have said this many times even when I was the prime minister. I was very nasty about America and Jews. But we still have the foreign direct investment.

"However, we cannot rely on foreign direct investments alone. We must build on our own system," said Dr Mahathir after launching a book Civilisations, Nomadic Migrations, Empires and The Trail of Islam, at the Islamic Arts Museum, here.

The book which entails the history of mankind, origin and commonality of major religions, is written by Syed Salem Albukhary.

Dr Mahathir was asked to elaborate on his statement on Wednesday and in his blog where he claimed the 9/11 attacks were staged as an excuse to mount attacks on the Muslim world.

Dr Mahathir said his statement was based on what he heard and saw on television.

"It sounds logical to me. Until today, you cannot even find scraps of the plane that crashed into the World Trade Centre and there is no picture of the other plane which was supposed to crash.

"The way the tower came crashing down was also funny. People who saw it were also not ordinary people. They were professional engineers and what they say is quite credible.

"I wish some television stations would consent to show the video as it is not long and only three hours. You can then see what I saw."

Dr Mahathir said there was fear among some people to say anything critical as they would be seen as accusing government of powerful countries of doing something wrong.

"But the government of powerful countries said lies to go to war.

"I have great respect for the Arabs but for them to hijack four planes is not very Arab. Just imagine the amount of planning that would be involved.

"They are not good at planning. They tie bomb to their body and crash."

To a question on whether his statement was a publicity stunt, Dr Mahathir said: "What do I gain? I am not going to be the prime minister anymore unless you want me to be ... you propose lah."

On the sand smuggling activities, Dr Mahathir said he was stressing on the issue previously so people could take action.

"Some people are selling a little bit of Malaysia at a time. If you cannot give away one territory then you go ahead giving sand."

Earlier in his speech, Dr Mahathir said that Islam was the most misunderstood religion in the world.

"Often it is misunderstood as a religion of the terrorists but the fact is Islam is a very peace and loving religion."