I refer o the letter Seeing Umno for what it is .

I feel the writer is wrong to perceive that Umno is a saviour of the Malays and is oppressing the non- Malay population. The fact is that Umno no longer champions the Malay masses but instead only a small group of Malay elitists.

The writer is under the impression that Malays are living on Easy Street and that scholarships and contracts are handed out willy-nilly to them on a silver platter. This is not true.

The majority of the Malays do not get scholarships and do not get places in universities. Also, contracts are awarded based on cronyism and nepotism as political and family connections are the main determinants in awarding these contracts.

Umno needs to rethink its goals and objectives if it is to remain relevant. Instead of counting the numbers of Malay lawyers/engineers/accountants etc, as an indicator of the success or failure of the NEP, it should also count the numbers of Malays who are unemployed or unable to afford to buy a home (still renting a room or living with parents) or unable to buy a car (using public transport or a motorbike) etc.

In Egypt, for example, poverty has increased immensely and this is indicated by the fact that 50% of its below 30 population are still unmarried.

Thus the benchmark used in evaluating the well-being of the Malays should be extended to cover a wider range of criteria.

Gone are the heyday of Umno when if one member of a kampung (Malay village) is sent overseas to study, the whole village community is proud with his/her success.

Malays are now more Westernised in their thinking today and thus more selfish and calculating. For every Malay person who gets financial assistance from Umno, there are thousands of Malays who get absolutely nothing.

And do the fortunate minority of Malays who enjoy Umno's favouritism help the poor Malay masses in return?

Or do they just help themselves, then demand to be called ‘Datuk’ and put out their hands to be kissed and to have their feet grovelled at?

Such is the true colours of the Umno politicians who talk about Malay rights and privileges when all they are doing is enriching themselves and their families.