Prior to the March 8 general election, Pakatan Rakyat made a promise in their manifesto that housing quotas would be based on need and poverty and not on race.

Anwar Ibrahim himself, in many of his ceramah , made that solemn promise. Now six months down the road, none of the five states that Pakatan took control of has even started to dismantle that old bumiputera quota based on race.

What seems even more contradictory was the PAS government in Kedah implementing a policy that requires a 50 percent compliance of units to be sold to bumiputera. Apparently, PAS did not subscribe to Pakatan's manifesto that the housing policy be based on need and not on race.

Instead, it would seem that PAS was of the view that BN's previous policy of a 30 percent bumi quota was inadequate, thus the introduction of the new 50 percent policy.

Looking at PAS’ history of administration in its state of Kelantan and Terengganu, one thing becomes obvious. They just simply lack the experience of governing a state.

Many a time they have shot themselves in the foot simply because they implemented populist policies which in reality did not work.

Introducing a 50 percent bumi policy in the housing sector simply means that rich bumiputera can buy houses at a 10 percent discount while poor Chinese and Indians have to bear the full cost.

This translates to a very ridiculous situation where the poor non-Malays have to subsidise the rich bumis. Not only is such a policy discriminatory but racist to the core. The criteria for qualification is race and not need or poverty.

Pakatan made a promise that its policy would be based on poverty and need and that was the reason why it made the promise to abolish the NEP and replace it with a policy that was equitable to every one irrespective of race.

That promise has not been kept in any of the PR-governed states.