Azanis Shahila Aman
KUALA LUMPUR: Former National Economic Action Council executive director Noor Azlan Ghazali has proposed a Bumiputera Economic Council be included in the constitution to ensure its continuity and every aspect remains relevant.
Noor Azlan, who is also Malaysian Inclusive Development and Advancement Institute, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (Minda-UKM) director, said it should be the highest council for the Bumiputera economic development agenda with a masterplan to steer the Bumiputera policy.
"In the past, we had the Bumiputera Agenda Action Council, and then we had the Shared Prosperity Council with Bumiputeras. In my opinion, even though it may seem small, changing the names and having an unstable context can contribute to the failure of this policy.
"This agenda must have clarity in terms of targets and unity of goals as well as coordination from various parties," he said at a media roundtable on Empowering the Bumiputera here today.
Noor Azlan said the government also needed to set up a secretariat to oversee the implementation and progress of the Bumiputera agenda.
He said Majlis Amanah Rakyat or Mara was in the best position to lead the secretariat, given that it has a presence in every district.
"The Bumiputera Agenda Steering Unit (Teraju) could also lead the secretariat, but they are still not very popular in rural areas. If you go to rural areas, many don't know what Teraju is.
"Furthemore, the establishment of a Bumiputera Development Research Centre is also significant, providing a bedrock for data support, conducting research, and analytical studies to evaluate economic progress and scrutinise challenges confronting the Bumiputera," he said.
Noor Azlan welcomed Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's invitation for non-Bumiputeras to participate in the The Bumiputera Economic Congress 2024 (KEB 2024) this week.
Anwar said this was in line with the principles espoused by his Madani administration that will spare no efforts to look into the welfare of all the people in the country regardless of their race and religion.
"All parties must change their perceptions because the Bumiputera agenda is a national agenda as 70 per cent of the population in Malaysia are Bumiputera. How do we expect to achieve developed nation status if 70 per cent of the population is not advanced and benefiting?
"We need to develop with competitiveness and strength. How do we increase this competitiveness and strength? Policies need to be strengthened, more productive, and targeted. This economic narrative can also be applied to non-Bumiputeras because there is no issue of the Bumiputera agenda leaving others behind," he added.
KEB 2024 will take place from tomorrow (Feb 29) to March 2.