Merit alone won't work in multiracial Malaysia, says Fuziah

Free Malaysia Today

11-06-2025

Deputy domestic trade and cost of living minister Fuziah Salleh said terms like 'tolerance' fall short in capturing what a harmonious society should aim for.
PETALING JAYA : A senator has argued that a purely merit-based system may be impractical in Malaysia, suggesting that a proportional approach would better reflect the country's multiracial make-up.
Fuziah Salleh, the deputy domestic trade and cost of living minister, said merit should be applied with consideration for ethnic representation, adding that opportunities and benefits should be distributed in proportion to the population.
'For example, if 60% of the population belongs to a certain ethnic group, then merit should be applied within that proportion,' she said during yesterday's recording of BBC World Questions at the Petaling Jaya Performing Arts Centre.
Fuziah, who is also the PKR secretary-general, said her party's constitution already reflects this principle by mandating representation from all major communities.
She was responding to a question on how Malaysia can reconcile its secular and democratic values with the continued dominance of race-based policies that favour the Malay-Muslim majority.
She said that PKR continues to promote a needs-based policy approach, a shift introduced by party president Anwar Ibrahim more than a decade ago to replace race-based affirmative action.
'It's not about race, it's about need.
'We're trying to educate people that benefits are not a right simply because they belong to a certain group. They should be based on socioeconomic status.'
She said PKR also conducts regular internal training sessions to help members understand why policies such as property discounts should be based on need rather than ethnicity.
'Why should a high-income Malay receive the same 10% discount as a poor Indian? We need to reorient our thinking, away from race-based entitlement,' she said.
Fuziah also expressed hope that her party's push for needs-based policies would eventually be reflected in national government policies as well.
On the topic of national unity, she said terms like 'tolerance' fall short in capturing what a harmonious society should aim for.
'I don't like the word 'tolerance'. It implies merely putting up with each other. It should be about respect, understanding, and embracing what each community stands for,' she said.
Malaysia has implemented race-based affirmative action policies since the introduction of the New Economic Policy in 1971, aimed at improving the socioeconomic position of the Bumiputeras – primarily the Malays and indigenous groups.
While these policies have helped reduce poverty and increase Malay participation in the economy, critics argue that they have created systemic inequalities by sidelining poorer individuals from other ethnic communities.