‘Pitfalls of previous NEP should be avoided’

‘Pitfalls of previous NEP should be avoided’
Business & Markets 2013
Written by Kamarul Anwar of theedgemalaysia.com
Friday, 13 September 2013 10:12

KUALA LUMPUR: Any new measures to help the bumiputera community should not replicate the pitfalls experienced in the previous New Economic Policy (NEP) when too many “leakages” had occurred and financial support was not given to genuine bumputera entrepreneurs.

The local education system needs to be looked into as it presently does not produce the right talents for the various economic sectors in the country.

This was the opinion expressed by Malay Economic Action Council (MEAC) CEO Mohd Nizam Mahshar, when asked on the government’s move to introduce new measures to boost the economic prowess of bumiputera entrepreneurs.

The MEAC is a coalition of 47 Malay business groups representing the interests of the Malays with regard to economic matters. The influential council has been at the forefront of many issues related to Malay economic rights in the country.

Nizam said the NEP, formulated in 1971, was well intentioned but did not meet its objectives due to the “leakages” and support given to the wrong individuals.

“There is nothing wrong with supporting entrepreneurs, but the support has to be given to genuine entrepreneurs and not the ‘Ali-baba’ kind,” he said.

Nizam said there is no short-term solution to fix the economic disparity between the bumiputera community and other Malaysians, and any new measures should not be myopic in nature.

“The issue [of bumiputera’s lack of economic presence] is real, but there should not be a short-term fix. The government-linked companies can divest all the shares they own in other companies to all Malays if they want to.

“But in the following week, these people will sell the shares because they lack the entrepreneurial knowledge and spirit,” he said in a telephone interview yesterday.

Nizam said there have been grouses by the business community that the current Malaysian education system does not produce a workforce which meets market needs.

“They [prospective employees] spend 11 to 15 years studying, but they are not equipped with the necessary skills to enter the working world. They have to spend another year or two undergoing the necessary training. That’s already time wasted.

“We have a lot of students in Malaysia, but the end-product cannot be brought to the stage,” he said.

Nizam suggested that the government realign agencies and ministries to look at issues to help Malaysian entrepreneurs, irrespective of race, to succeed in the business world.

“The government should form a key agency that has a direct link to various ministries,” he said, adding that the government should look into industries and areas that bumiputeras can contribute to.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak posted on his Twitter account that the government will announce new measures to boost economic activities among bumiputeras.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Abdul Wahid Omar said an announcement on the new measures will be made tomorrow.

He said the prime minister will touch on human capital development, equity ownership and property ownership by bumiputeras.

The bumiputera equity ownership in the country was at 23.09% in 2010, short of the NEP’s objective of 30% by 1990.

The household income of bumiputeras is also lower than the two other major races in the country.

According to the Department of Statistics, the mean household income of bumiputeras last year was RM4,457 a month, which was 29.99% lower than the Chinese and 14.82% lower than the Indians.