Former minister Zaid Ibrahim has dismissed the perception among the so-called "defenders of the Malay race" that the Chinese-dominated DAP is a threat.

Zaid  pointed out that DAP does not belong to the elite to wield the influence and might to deprive ordinary Malays of their economic and political power.

On the contrary, he said, DAP members are generally ordinary businessmen, Chinese schoolteachers, rubber dealers, pork sellers, shopkeepers, factory owners and shop-lot operators.

"They do not receive privatisation projects or huge tracts of land for housing development from state governments at low prices.

"They aren't close to the palace, nor do they have timber and highway concessions. They aren't independent power producers like YTL and Genting. Indeed, those Chinese who usually get these prized assets are not DAP members.

"So what can ordinary DAP members do to pose a threat to the Malays?" he asked in his blog posting, which took a swipe at UiTM.

Zaid also questioned if DAP is considered a threat because of its ideology, which he believes cannot be worse than communism.

"And even the prime minister is fostering closer relations with the biggest communist government in the world," he added.

As for its "Malaysian Malaysia" slogan which rattles some Malays, Zaid argued that it was far from being a threat.

"It is DAP's way of saying that all citizens are equal before the law, which is the correct position to have in any country in the world… except in Malaysia, apparently," he added.

Don't forget the Chinese in MCA

On the same note, Zaid also reminded the "defenders of the Malay race" that the Chinese in MCA are also Chinese.

"Chinese in DAP are no different from Chinese in MCA. They all look alike. The only difference is this: Chinese in MCA are willing to let Umno rule forever as long as they get some seats in the cabinet, or are given some port and highway concessions from time to time.

"DAP, on the other hand, is willing to give Anwar Ibrahim the chance to become prime minister as long as DAP too gets some seats in the cabinet," he added.

Meanwhile, Zaid took UiTM to task for being in the spotlight for the wrong reasons.

Firstly, he said, the university organised a seminar at which participants were in full throttle telling Christians that their religion was "false".

"And then, at the Teluk Intan by-election, a former vice-chancellor and various alumni campaigned all-out to make sure the 'Malay traitor' (DAP candidate) Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud would not succeed," he added.

Zaid urged UiTM to stay focused on teaching and helping students to develop their talents and faculties to the maximum, instead of being involved in "cheap politics".

"Attending to serious socio-economic issues is a lot harder than parading oneself as a defender of the race, but that's what serious academicians do if they really want to be true heroes," he added.