KUALA LUMPUR: The term ketuanan has a negative connotation and should not be used, said MCA vice-president Datuk Ong Tee Keat said.

He also urged Malays to be more sensitive when using the word because ketuanan could be interpreted as supremacy or dominance, depending on the context it was used when making a stand on Malay special rights and privileges.

"The opposite of the root word is hamba which means slave. Sometimes, this is what non-Malays perceive when the term is used," said Ong, who is also transport minister, after launching the Golden Bull Award 2008 yesterday.

"We all live as equals and I do not see the relationship between Malays and non-Malays as master and slave.

"The word ketuanan has nothing to do with the special rights as it is already enshrined in the Federal Constitution," he said.
When asked if he feared any backlash from the bold statement, he said

"What backlash? I am only speaking the truth."