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I would like to share my views with regards to the recently concluded 2005 Umno general assembly.

Umno Youth chief Hishamuddin Hussein Onn urged the government to start the New Economic Policy (NEP) all over again. This controversial policy which was effective from 1970 to 1990 has not been successful.

It was raise bumiputera equity to 30 percent of the national equity but it only achieved 18 percent. So why does the Umno Youth push for implementation of a failed policy? I am also wondering why the Orang Asli community not been given a level playing field. They are also bumiputeras in this country.

What actually needs to be done is to create a level playing field for all. How are the Malays going to be key global players if they do not compete? It is vital for them to compete with the rest of their Malaysian brothers prior to becoming key competitors in the global market.

The current scenario now is akin to putting a runner 200 metres ahead in a 4x100m event even before the race starts. This NEP policy would, in the long term, affect Malaysia's economic growth.

We are already losing the competitive edge with the emergence of China and India as significant Asian markets in the 21st century. And looking at it based on the approved permits (APs) issue, I notice a pattern that indicates an abuse of the NEP with more than 25,000 APs issued to three individuals.

As for the dearth of successful bumiputera contractors, I would like to suggest that the government study the proposals made by Koon Yew Yin's article entitled Why are there so few successful bumiputera contractors? that was published in Aliran [Vol. 25 (5)]

Among others he suggested that the government should look at creating skilled bumiputera workers for the construction industry by sending them to skills enhancement schools. Apart from that, he urged the authorities to 'stop giving out juicy contracts without tendering'.

Last is the issue of unemployed graduates. The Puteri Umno chief, Noraini Ahmad, revealed that 70 percent of the unemployed graduates are women and half of the 213,540 Puteri Umno members are jobless.

How are these young people going to join the employment sector if they are under-skilled? Most of them graduates with a degree in ICT and yet cannot speak proper English. At the same time I would not put the blame solely on them.

The national education policy is changed according to the whims of the ministers concerned. People at the top just make decisions without considering the students. Several years ago, a basic degree programme could only be completed in four years. Currently it is three.

The rationale given by the authorities is that it is important to increase the number of graduates. Universities therefore become factories churning out mass numbers of graduates. Malaysia today needs high quality graduates, not a high quantity of graduates.

As for the issue of a high number of women being unemployed, it is parallel with the fact that there are more women than men in the varsities.


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