I am very concerned that in Paragraph 15 of the Royal Address, the government regards “excellence” as a goal to be achieved in 13 years’ time in 2020, when it should have been a constant and unbroken standard of both public and private service from Independence half-a-century ago.
The most meaningful way for the nation to celebrate our 50th Merdeka Anniversary is for the government to end the denial complex and recognise that driving over a million talented, creative and enterprising Malaysians from our shores in the past four decades because of discriminatory policies is one of our greatest nation-building failures and to summon a national resolve to end the root causes of such continuing brain drain.
Let no one stand up to say that the over a million talented, creative and enterprising Malaysians who had been driven from our shores in the past four decades because of discriminatory policies are unpatriotic, disloyal and anti-national, for if such an argument is to be accepted, then those who had been responsible for the discriminatory policies which caused such a costly brain drain to the country would be even more unpatriotic, disloyal and anti-national.
This brain drain problem must be given utmost importance and priority to stem a new exodus of emigration of Malaysian talents, both Malay and non-Malay.
I had warned immediately after the Umno general assemblies last November that a new exodus of emigration of Malaysian talents, both Malay and non-Malay, would be triggered by the rise of racial extremism and religious intolerance like the “fire and brimstone” Umno assemblies with keris-wielding and May 13 threats of bloodshed, amok and riots, with the biggest casualties being Malaysia’s global competitiveness, the success of the Visit Malaysia Year 2007 and the 50th Merdeka Day celebrations.
This was why immediately after the Umno general assemblies, I had introduced an emergency motion in Parliament on November 21, 2006 to debate the “fire and brimstone” Umno general assemblies, which I had described as “a most serious blot on Malaysian nation-building for over three decades” for three reasons:
- undermining national unity and the Vision 2020 objective of achieving a Bangsa Malaysia;
- undermining international competitiveness scaring away foreign investment; and
- raising the question whether the 50th anniversary celebration for half-a-century of nationhood could be meaningful for all Malaysians.
Unfortunately, my motion was not allowed. My worst fears have now come to pass. There was a 2,000 per cent jump in inquries about emigration by Malaysians in the week of the “fire and brimstone” Umno general assemblies. A migration agent in Kuala Lumpur had told the New Sunday Times that from an average of between 15 and 20 inquiries for migration a day, the phones have been “ringing non-stop” in the two weeks after the “fire-and brimstone” and “keris-wielding” Umno general assemblies last November.
For the week between Nov. 14 and Nov. 19 (the week of the “fire and brimstone” Umno general assemblies), there were about 6,500 enquiries for migration to Australia, 5,500 enquiries for New Zealand, 4,000 for Canada, about 3,500 enquiries for other countries, including Norway and Switzerland.
This works out to a total of 19,500 inquiries or 3,250 inquries a day for the six-day period — or some 2,000 per cent jump. The callers were of all races — Malays, Indians, Chinese and others.
Malaysians would like to know whether the Cabinet had ever discussed this problem of brain drain and a new exodus of Malaysian talents emigrating abroad — and whether it has come up with any counter-strategy not only to stem any new brain drain to allay widespread concerns and fears about the nation and the future so that Malaysian talents will remain in the country but to reverse the earlier brain drain to help Malaysia achieve the transition to a knowledge-based economy.
[Speech (6) on Royal Address debate in Parliament 21.3.07]