If we continue to play the racial game and protect the existence of the race-based parties in the BN, it is only to our own peril. Continuing the NEP policy without regard to the economic imbalances it is creating will only see Malaysia going down a slippery slope towards extinction.

Perhaps the racists who spew out racial slurs at every Umno meeting year after year (except the one before the election year) wishes this for our beloved land but for those who truly love this land, we must see an end to racial politics and race-based political parties. Race-based political parties are tearing us apart and the ‘rakyat’ have become more segregated over the last 30 years.

The world on the outside is globalising without consideration for petty issues like race and religion. For example, the Islamic land of Saudi Arabia appointed Professor Shih Choon Fong from the National University of Singapore as president of its newly minted university, the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology.

Will we ever see Universiti Malaya put a non-bumiputera at the helm? It won’t even if he or she is the best in the field. Surprisingly, Saudi Arabia did not source from Malaysia to fill the position of president at their new university.

The Regent of Perak himself has said that we must make this country a place where every Malaysian can believe beyond a shadow of a doubt that they have a place under the Malaysian sun. Ask most non-bumiputeras and it is unfortunate that many will say they do not feel happy today. One cannot ignore the overt racial policies when it comes to business, education and careers.

It is sad that this happens in Malaysia. I have been told that many developers and contractors say that they are better treated when doing business in neighbouring countries as opposed to their own land. Most countries do not take your skin colour into consideration when awarding a project. Instead issues such as quality and punctuality are considered. Was it not our very own Genting who won one of the bids for Singapore’s prized project on Sentosa Island?

If we love this country we must remove ideologies that divide us and political parties that espouse racial policies. We must begin to compete with the world to make Malaysia a prosperous and developed country where all, irregardless of race can, as the Regent said ‘have a place under the Malaysian sun’.