served in the Treasury for 27 years and rose to the rank of Deputy Secretary-General), the book provides diagnoses and recommendations, as well as highlights the writer’ s concerns, on the advancement of the Malaysian economy, albeit before the currency crisis of 1997-98.
“ In terms of policy, we have to modify our education system. We have to make it more technologically- and quality-oriented. In the past, we have emphasised quantitiative- not qualitative- education. It is time we remedy this.”(“ Promoting Productivity-Driven Growth,” p. 83)
The Colour of Inequality: Ethnicity, Class, Income, and Wealth in Malaysia by Muhammad Abdul Khalid
Economist Muhammad Abdul Khalid delves deep into the subject of inequality in Malaysia, peeling layers of assumptions aside about wealth and income distribution, and in the process, shattering misconceptions Malaysians themselves may have about wealth ownership. There is some good news but most of the findings point to a sobering present and dangerous future for the average Malaysian, whose savings and wealth are calculated to be inadequate. Dr Muhammad also offers policy prescriptions, and these, along with the uncomfortable statistics that are presented, should enable Malaysian readers to arrive at some hard truths.
“ The focus on Bumiputeras cannot be seen purely as an ethnic problem, as in a democratic society, the problem of the
majority are a national problem, not a Bumiputera problem intrinsically. Inaction in addressing the wealth gap is a recipe for disaster, as studies have shown that an unequal society normally leads to social conflict, and thus limit overall economic well-being.”(“ The Colour of Inequality”, p. 193)
Rich Malaysia, Poor Malaysians: Essays on Energy, Economy and Education by Anas Alam Faizli
A compact collection of articles written in 2012 and 2013 by oil and gas professional and cofounder of Blindspot, Anas Faizli. The writer sought answers to the question of Malaysia’ s high income inequality- why and how best to reduce the gap. With topics covering education, taxes, philosophy in universities, and- of course- Malaysia’ s petroleum resources, the book is a young Malaysian’ s attempt to dissect issues of concern, and his thoughts on the way forward. His arguments are supported by relevant research and statistics, making this book also a useful reference by researchers.
“ Income inequality is a very serious impediment to our hopes as a truly developed nation. It would be a great irony if the majority of Malaysians do not truly experience that high income status, once we reach the US $ 15,000 mark. How are we to declare ourselves high income when the effects of inequality, such as crime, unemployment, health and social problems as well as depleting social goods, will be so apparent?”(“ Malaysia: High Income Nation, Low Income Rakyat”, p. 57)
26 PERDANA MAGAZINE 2017