NEP

The photo of Datuk Hishammuddin Hussein hoisting a keris during the UMNO general assembly printed on the front page of one of the Malaysian dailies a week back would certainly have caused some discomfort amongst the non-Malays in the country. Keris, as all Malaysians know, is a weapon, and weapon is normally associated with violence, conflict, war, etc.

Datuk Hishammuddin, as the UMNO Youth Chief, have been calling for the revival of the New Economic Policy (NEP). While it is good to improve the well being of the bumiputra, one will still question the effectiveness of this policy and whether the environment has changed since the NEP was introduced in the early 70s. Using the AP allocation as an example, we can clearly see that the so called 'NEP' has only managed to significantly benefit a few Malays. UMNO should look within itself first before looking elsewhere for solutions in order to achieve the original intentions of NEP. There is also no point to threaten those who voice their views against the NEP. Furthermore, trying to eat into the market share of other races in Malaysia is not going to benefit everyone in the long run. In this era of globalisation, we should work hand in hand to compete with the rest of the world.

Anyway, I wonder how many other countries have raced based politics. Pity those non-bumiputra who live in hard core poverty. They will be left behind in our country's development. Wouldn't the NEP be more meaningful if it's aimed at improving the lives of those who are in poverty?

AP saga (Part 2)

The government has finally made public the 2004 AP allocation in response to Dr. M's call.

One notable information is that Rafidah Aziz's niece was given 850 APs in 2004 and only 199 in 2005. One would wonder why such a steep decline from 2004 to 2005. Does the decline indicate her inability to use up her APs in 2004? This will lead us to question on the criteria of awarding APs. One will also wonder why Rafidah was so reluctant to release any information on APs thus far. "Ask the Prime Minister" was the standard answer that she has been providing thus far. Wouldn't she be in a better position to answer questions directly related to her own ministry?

One should also remember that she quoted Dr. M's son as one of the recipients of APs but failed to reveal that her niece is also one of the beneficieries.

I'm sure many question marks are floating in our heads. Let's hope that the truth will be revealed soon. Malaysians are no longer ignorant and stupid.

AP saga

Just when we thought the ringgit depeg has silenced the AP issue, the whole issue took a new twist today.

Dr. Mahathir, in his latest statement, accused the Prime Minister's Department of not releasing the complete list of AP holders.

He now calls for the release of the complete 2004 AP allocation. Aisehman has started tracking, here and here.

On the issue of the "non-renewal" if Tengku Mahaleel's contract as the CEO of Proton, Dr. M said that he was not surprised by the move by Proton's Board of Directors. Dr Mahathir also said Tengku Mahaleel's ability to run Proton was cramped after he was removed from the chairmanship of major Proton subsidiaries.

I'm sure more details will surface in the next few days or weeks...

Ringgit Peg: Malaysia Adopts a Managed Float from today onwards

Malaysia has abandoned it's seven year peg to the United States Dollar (USD) in what has been seen by many as a move that follows China. Both nation has moved to a managed float. This will allow the ringgit to trade in a band against an undisclosed basket of trade-weighted currencies.

However, it is widely believed that the ringgit will not deviate much from its current level of RM3.80 to a dollar.

According to Reuters, earlier on today, Bank Negara Malaysia has declined to comment on the market talk that it had intervened in the currency markets to stabilise the ringgit.

"We are not going to comment on daily operations," Abu Hassan Alshari Yahaya, Director of the bank's Corporate Communication Department, told Reuters.

Currency traders said it appeared the central bank had stepped into the market to buy dollars to prevent a rapid appreciation in the ringgit, which is widely viewed by economists to be undervalued. At 1125 Malaysian time, the currency stood at 3.78 to the greenback, compared with its old peg of 3.80.