When two figures as seasoned as Tun Musa Hitam and Nazir Razak speak up about the New Economic Policy (NEP), it’s worth pausing to listen, not to pick sides, but to reflect. These aren’t outsiders throwing stones. They’re insiders who’ve lived through Malaysia’s ups and downs, and they’ve raised questions that deserve more than a passing headline.
Their point isn’t that the NEP was wrong. It’s that a policy born in 1971 in a vastly different Malaysia, may have stayed in its original form for too long. When a well-intentioned safety net stays unchanged for decades, it can start to feel less like a springboard and more like a crutch.
To be honest the NEP had noble goals to eradicate poverty and restructuring society so that race no longer dictated economic roles. It was meant to be a 20-year fix but more than 50 years later, we have to ask the question of to whether we still using the same tools for a problem that has evolved?
Nazir Razak put it bluntly when he warned about a deeply ingrained "tongkat culture", where politically linked contracts and share ownership schemes can sometimes reward connections over competence. Tun Musa echoed that sentiment, acknowledging the policy’s benefits while admitting it unintentionally bred a reliance on government help.
These aren’t comfortable truths but growth never comes from comfort. Now, let’s be clear. This isn’t about abandoning the Malays or scrapping affirmative action overnight. That would be reckless and unfair. The real question is far more constructive:
How do we turn protection into real empowerment?
We need to shift from a permanent assistance model to a capability model. Here’s what that could look like:
1. Make education the real engine of affirmative action.
Instead of focusing so heavily on shares, licenses, and contracts, let’s pour resources into what actually changes lives like early childhood development, quality schools, STEM, language proficiency (both English and Bahasa Melayu), TVET, digital skills, and entrepreneurship. A child doesn’t choose where they’re born but the state can ensure that a tough start doesn’t become a lifelong sentence.
2. Introduce healthy competition not protection into Bumiputera business.
There’s nothing wrong with helping Bumiputera entrepreneurs build capacity. The problem is when political connections matter more than performance. Government procurement should reward innovation, quality, value, and job creation. A Malay entrepreneur who wins a contract because they’re better is a national asset. One who survives only on patronage? That’s a missed opportunity for everyone.
3. Replace the tongkat with a launchpad.
A launchpad gives you a boost, education, financing, mentoring, market access but it’s designed to help you fly on your own. Every assistance programme should have a clear exit or graduation plan. The question shouldn’t just be "How much did we spend?" but "How many people became independent because of it? How many businesses thrived without government contracts? How many families escaped poverty for good?"
4. Target help where it’s needed most.
While staying honest about history, a poor Malay family deserves help. So does a poor Chinese, Indian, Orang Asli, or family in Sabah and Sarawak. That doesn’t mean pretending historical inequalities never existed. It means getting smarter about identifying real disadvantage and directing support where it creates the biggest impact.
5. Build a new generation of wealth creators not contract hunters.
We don’t need more companies dependent on government projects. We need Malaysian companies competing globally in semiconductors, AI, biotech, fintech, renewable energy, and professional services. We need entrepreneurs who create IP, export products, employ thousands, and win in international markets. That’s real economic power.
There’s also a psychological layer here that we can’t ignore. When assistance is given across generations, it’s human nature to start seeing it as an entitlement rather than a temporary boost. Changing that mindset requires changing the message.
Not: "The government will stop helping you."
But: "The government will help you become strong enough not to need help anymore."
That’s a far more empowering social contract. The Malays should never be seen as permanent passengers on Malaysia’s development journey. They are and must increasingly be partners, producers, innovators, and contributors to national prosperity. Expecting them to compete and succeed at the highest level isn’t anti-Malay, it’s the opposite. It’s a vote of confidence in their potential.
So let’s imagine what we might call NEP 2.0, from protection to participation.
Its principles could be simple:
· Protect the vulnerable.
· Build capability.
· Encourage competition.
· Reward productivity.
· Create wealth.
· Graduate people from assistance to independence.
Let’s measure success honestly, not by how much preferential treatment remains after another decade, but by whether:
· A young Malay graduate can hold their own in the global economy.
· A Malay company can win contracts on merit alone.
· Malay professionals lead world-class institutions.
· Malay entrepreneurs create wealth that lifts all Malaysians.
That’s the transition we need from tongkat to take-off, from protection to capability, from entitlement to contribution.
The greatest honour we can pay to our early nation-builders isn’t to preserve every tool they created in 1971. It’s to build a Malaysia where those tools are no longer needed because every Malaysian, regardless of background, has the education, skills, assets, and confidence to rise on their own strength, and lift the nation with them.
K.T.Maran Social Environmental Animal Activist
K.T. Maran (maran.kt@gmail.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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