I refer to Malaysiakini report Don: No such thing as 'social contract' .

For Royal Professor Ungku Aziz to say that there was no social contract between the founding fathers of our nation, this has put a nail in the coffin on those ultra-Malays who still see Ketuanan Melayu as a cornerstone for race relationships in this country.

While other matured and well-developed nations have put to rest the ‘master and slave’ relationship among the various races, it baffles the mind of thinking people why should such policy still remain relevant in this 21 ^st century here in Malaysia. We might call our British colonial masters ‘ Tuan ’ or ‘Sir’ in the early days but after half-a-century of independence, don’t you think that such thinking is out of date?

Mind you, the United States who imported Negros from Africa a few centuries ago to be the white man’s slave might have a black man to be their next president if Barrack Obama wins the ticket to the White House in the coming US presidential elections.

Malay rights have been ensconced in the federal constitution and cannot be taken away unless by a two-thirds majority in Parliament subject to the Malay rulers approval. No one doubts that in the early days, the bumiputera, especially the Malays, needed affirmative actions to take them out of their cycle of poverty to be on par with other races, especially the Chinese. But the NEP has outlived it purpose and it should be replaced with a new policy which will eradicate poverty regardless of race and creed.

The playing field should be more even and let the best among the best compete among themselves in order for our nation to progress in the future. Why should rich Malays with their ‘right’ political connections obtain a big slice of the economic cake while the poor people are denied such opportunities to get them out of their cycle of poverty?

To be a respected race, the Malays must discard the notion that the government will always have to provide them with opportunities in studies and business as if it was their birth right. The Malays should be able to compete with the other races on an equal footing and work hard to improve their lot rather than expecting handouts from the government.

Ungku Aziz , a towering Malay whose intellectual thinking is way ahead of his time, has opened a Pandora Box’s with his outright statement that there is no written ‘social contract’ among the various races prior to independence. Umno politicians will now cry foul about his daring statement as they will always use the Ketuanan Melayu bogey to win the hearts and minds of the Malays to support their cause. .

But the Malays cannot be in a denial mode anymore. We must accept the fact that in the brave new world that we live in where people and capital move to places where no restrictions are imposed, the old way of doing business by having quota systems will drive capital away from our country and the people will suffer in the end if business opportunities pass our shores.

The Malays should look at their Singapore brethren who are no less the worse although unlike their Malaysian cousins, they does not have any NEP policy to get a leg up in society. There is no short cut for success unless you work hard for it.