Global Institute for Tomorrow (GIFT)’s Chandran Nair, an engineer, economist, entrepreneur and scholar, points out that Malaysia’s political elites use the three very powerful levers of race, religion and royalty to instill fear into the public, giving them unlimited access to wealth and power.
(Many thanks to the Asia School of Business for their collaboration with The Do More Podcast, in whose studio this conversation was recorded. The Asia School of Business is a partnership between MIT’s Sloan School of Management and Bank Negara Malaysia).
CONTENTS:
00:00:00 – Intro
00:02:55 – Where is Malaysia Right Now?
00:04:34 – It’s Time to Remove Politicians’ Free Pass of Race-Religion-Royalty
00:06:15 – The UiTM Issue: People Are Afraid to Speak Out
00:07:20 – Political Allegations, Police Reports Inciting Race, Royalty Are One Way Streets
00:08:30 – There is Fear Everywhere – the ‘Red Line’ of Race-Religion-Royalty
00:09:44 – Governance Rule #1: Malaysia Is Not Owned by One Racial Group
00:10:08 – Governance Rule #2: Political Elite Are Obliged to Protect All Minorities to Prevent Unrest
00:11:02 – Governance Rule #3: The State Must Prevent Any Racial Segment Receiving Undeserved Privilege
00:11:27 – Affirmative Action Must be Targeted And Not Used At the Expense of Chinese, Indians or Other Minorities
00:12:20 – Malay Political Elite’s Power Abuse
00:12:50 – Racism is Institutionalised in Malaysia
00:13:37 – Institutionalised Racism Has Destroyed Malaysia’s Institutions and Meritocracy is Dead
00:14:34 – The Enemy of Meritocracy Is ..
00:15:20 – Institutionalised Racism Is a Fundamental Threat to Malaysia Because ..
00:16:58 – Can Malaysia’s Racist Policies Ever be Dismantled?
00:20:24 – Is There Even a Will to Dismantle These Policies?
00:23:14 – A Poor Deal: Incompetence and Corruption In a System of Elites to Grab Money and Power
00:26:00 – The System of Patronage Seems to Work And Is Even Aspirational – That’s Why It’s So Clever
00:26:52 – The Wealth Gap Between Malaysia ($12k/yr) and Singapore ($76k/yr): WHY
00:28:20 – Malaysia’s Wealth is Not Shared: This Must Change
00:29:50 – We Have Twin Towers and Skyscrapers But 70% of Wastewater in KL is Untreated. WHY
00:30:33 – Basic Necessities Are Being Corroded: Rice Reserves: 21 Days Only
00:32:10 – Abuses of Political Elite Prevent Access to Basic Rights for the Poor Malay Majority
00:35:00 – Trigger Points for Positive Change?
00:38:40 – Was the Green Wave A Protest Vote Against Corruption?
00:39:10 – A Collapse of the Ringgit Could Trigger a ….
00:39:45 – A Food Shortage Could Trigger a ….
00:45:20 – Malaysia’s Position in ASEAN
00:49:02 – ‘Stay and Build’ on Malaysia’s Strengths – Which Are .. ?
00:51:54 – What Does The World Look Like in 2044?
00:56:00 – Malaysia Does Not Have ANY Leaders
00:57:10 – Hope is Essential. Indonesia Once Was a Basket Case Too
00:58:22 – Singapore’s George Yeo Says These Three Leaders Are Legit
01:00:36 – What About China? Foreign Policy, War, Conquest, Power?
01:06:25 – How China Thinks About Malaysia and its Diaspora of 7m Chinese in Southeast Asia
01:08:25 – What is China’s Soft Power?
01:12:42 – US Elections: Who is Less Likely To Throw Bombs?
01:14:22 – Who Would China Prefer? Trump or Biden?
01:16:25 – How Is Chandran Preparing Himself For His Own Future?
01:27:32 – Let’s get the Best People Back Into Malaysia’s Institutions to do the Best Job, Irrespective of Race of Religion, To Help ALL Malaysians
..
Some of Chandran’s Key Articles Mentioned in the Podcast:
To whom does a country belong?
https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2023/07/22/to-whom-does-a-country-belong/
Anti-corruption ‘revolution’ imperative and long overdue
https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2024/01/27/anti-corruption-revolution-imperative-and-long-overdue/
Now everyone prospers: new equity pathways
https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2024/03/23/now-everyone-prospers-new-equity-pathways/
FOLLOW CHANDRAN HERE:
URL: https://global-inst.com/our-team/
X: @Cnomics
LinkedIn: https://hk.linkedin.com/in/chandran-nair-57184418a
Columns:
SCMP: https://www.scmp.com/author/chandran-nair
MalaysiaKini: https://www.malaysiakini.com/en/tag/chandran%20nair
Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chandran_Nair_(businessman)
