Media statement by Lim Guan Eng in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday, 27^th November 2011: 

Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin's proud defence of UMNO's racist agenda and he is Malay First and Malaysian Second only proves that 1Malaysia is an empty slogan 

UMNO Deputy President Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin's proud defence of UMNO's racist agenda and that he is Malay First and Malaysian second only proves that 1Malaysia is an empty slogan designed to win votes and rapidly discarded after the next general elections. What is surprising is that Muhyiddin does not consider illogical or inconsistent with pursuing a strictly racial Malay agenda with the agenda of other non-Malay Malaysians.

Muhyiddin even pursues the perverse logic that DAP leaders such as Lim Kit Siang and myself are Chinese chauvinists even though DAP has fought for all Malaysians and our membership open to all including Malays, Indians Ibans and Kadazans. Muhyiddin conveniently ignores the fact that I was imprisoned and lost my parliamentary seat for defending an underaged Malay rape victim who was detained instead of her rapists.

DAP is no threat to Malays. Only UMNO is a threat to Malays and Malaysians with its open acceptance and defence of repressive violation of basic human rights, corruption and abuse of power.

By using such fear and threats, UMNO can justify and cover up its numerous financial and corruption scandals that has cost Malaysia hundreds of billions of ringgit such as:-

• the latest exposes of excessive expenditure of RM3.7 billion by government departments in the 2010 Auditor-General's Report without any punishment imposed; and

• the controversy of allowing public funds to a company related to a Minister, that was meant for rearing cows but misused to purchase high-end luxury condominiums.

UMNO has consistently undertaken a remorseless campaign of lies and fear against the DAP to scare the Malays that their rights and interests are being threatened. Nothing could be further from the truth as the civil service, the police and the army is overwhelmingly dominated by the Malays. Further the critical economic sectors in the insurance, banking, automobile, ports, highways are controlled by Malay entrepreneurs or interests.

In politics, the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister are Malays. All the Menteri Besars and Ketua Menteris are Malays except for Penang. No non-Malay political leader has even talked about wanting to be Prime Minister because Malaysians accept the political reality that the Prime Minister of Malaysia must come from the Malay community. That is why talk of wanting to amend the Federal Constitution to only Malays is superfluous as it ignores political reality and is racist as it considers non-Malays as second-class citizens.

The highest political post available to non-Malays now is as Ministers and the Penang Chief Minister post. Even the post of the Penang Chief Minister, the last Chief Minister post held by a non-Malay, may fall into the hands of UMNO due to UMNO contesting the highest number of seats amongst BN component parties in Penang. Out of the 40 state seats in Penang, UMNO contests 15, Gerakan 13, MCA 10 and MIC 2. If BN forms the government, so long as UMNO contests the largest number of seats, any BN Chief Minister will be a puppet of UMNO until an UMNO candidate eventually becomes the Chief Minister.

Despite such extensive control by Malays in the political, public and private sector, DAP has never carried out a campaign of fear and lies that this threatens the interests of non-Malays. DAP has never carried out such a campaign because DAP considers all Malays as Malaysians who has an equal right as any other Malaysian to be in these sectors. This is evident in the open tender system where 70% of state government contracts are won by Malays proving the Malay contractors are competitive, only UMNO crony contractors are useless.

Further the Penang state government has appointed its top civil servants based on merits who happened to be Malay, including the State Secretary, State Financial Officer and the two Presidents of the local councils in Penang Island and Seberang Perai (who also happened to the first women so appointed).

The time has come to reject UMNO's racial approach that Malays are not competent and need a corrupt and racialist party like UMNO to protect them. The time has come for us to unite on common issues of justice, truth, freedom, public welfare, and democracy.

UMNO has stolen my generation's future for the past 50 years. We must not allow UMNO to steal our children's future. Only a people-centric government under a Malaysian framework offered by Pakatan Rakyat can protect our children's future.

*Lim Guan Eng, DAP Secretary General & MP for Bagan