Lee Kuan Yew, in his memoirs, wrote that his efforts to attract talent were not so successful among the Malaysian bumiputeras and Indonesian pribumis due to the many privileges accorded to them in their own countries. Typically, Lee failed to mention the systemic challenges facing the Malays in Singapore so vividly elaborated in Lily Zubaidah Rahim’s Singapore Dilemma.

In Malaysia, this desire to stay “home” was undoubtedly true in the 1970s and 1980s as the Malays who had been largely marginalised during the colonial era were just starting to catch up with the other races with the advent of the New Economic Policy (NEP).

But the times, they are changing. Partly due to the success of the NEP, a more globalised environment, the middle-income trap and the establishment’s systemic aversion to talent, the Malay Malaysians are now more ready, and in some cases obliged, to emigrate in search of better opportunities. Recently, Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah lamented how even the Malays are leaving “Tanah Melayu”.

Much has been written about how more than 300,000 Malaysians migrated from March 2008 to August 2009 and how nearly 4,000 renounced their citizenship in 2009 compared with half that number in the previous year. What is significant is the news that more Malays are taking this momentous step than before.

In 2007, a controversy erupted when the then Deputy Home Affairs Minister Datuk Tan Chai Ho stated that of a total of 107,000 Malaysians who had renounced their citizenship since Independence, 79,000 were Malays. The then Home Minister Datuk Seri Radzi Sheikh Ahmad later clarified that only 10,000 of these leavers were actually Malays.

While no detailed statistics are available to date, anecdotal evidence from policy analysts and migration agents states that the previously miniscule Malay migration out of the country has surged. This begs the question: why are they leaving?

The NEP played a crucial role in the creation of a vibrant and capable Malay middle class. Many Malays benefited from the expansion of educational opportunities that began in the 1970s and the growth of employment opportunities in the civil service and private sector in the 1990s.

This had the net effect of making the Malays better informed. Many had the chance to study abroad or had relatives who went. Today, the Internet, cable television and cheap air travel also allow them to keep abreast of developments abroad and to compare with things back home. The community’s horizons broadened, making the difficulties back home starker.

The economic and political crises of 1997/98 saw the Malay and indeed Malaysian middle class bearing the brunt of national stagnation. Today, an economy that was once on a par with South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore is now struggling to compete not only with China and India, but also newly emerging Southeast Asian economies such as Vietnam and Indonesia.

The cost of living has gone up but not the wages. Employment opportunities for professional Malays are becoming more limited. Sadly, many are making ends meet by resorting to personal loans and credit cards.

Furthermore, our work culture drives away talent. Our government-linked companies (GLCs) and civil service do not provide an adequate framework to leverage their capabilities. The notion that this younger generation should be pliant drones is still deeply rooted while more flexible countries are taking away our brightest youth.

These nations have realised that their wealth does not lie in natural resources but human capital. Our country has failed to invest in its people. Government apologists often pin the blame on private companies or individuals, but it is really the inflexible red tape of the state that is at fault.

For example, I was told of the plight of a Malay doctor overseas who wanted to come back. He applied to be allowed to pay back part of his bond and serve the government for a reduced term. His request was flatly refused, leading the doctor to cross the Causeway where he was immediately recruited.

Another Malay doctor based in Britain found that many of his fellow medical students ran into trouble dealing with the Malaysian bureaucracy: registration, starting new projects and opening new clinics. These are just two examples of our citizens whose attempts to serve are being frustrated. Such inefficiency is ingrained in the DNA of the system and will not go away, no matter what “transformation programme” is undertaken. 

Make no mistake, many Malays are tired of the “crutches”, of the opaque business environment where connections often trump hard work. Furthermore, many are hurt by the very unfair perception that successful Malays get there solely due to government assistance. Some even choose to work overseas just to prove that they can succeed in a “hostile” environment.

Like other Malaysians too, they are getting worried about the worsening state of race relations and politics and abhor the poor public schools and hospitals in the country. Like so many others, they put their children first. For them, Malaysia seems to have lost its promise and become a scary place where one’s freedom and rights can be trampled upon with impunity.

Thus, working abroad, whether in New York, the Silicon Valley, London, Tokyo, Dubai or Melbourne, becomes more attractive. This is not very unusual as the Malays have always been a seafaring people, travelling as far as Madagascar and the Pacific prior to Western colonisation.
Some may say “good riddance”, but as I said before, the country ends up poorer. The brain drain is serious, given that many of our migrants are professionals.

This is our famous “diaspora”. Many have never really turned their back on the country and want to return but cannot due to the lack of opportunities back home. This creates a vicious circle as more talent flows out of the country, making the journey up the value chain even harder.

It is not that the government is not aware of the problem.  Since 1995, there have been three “brain gain” programmes to attract our best talents back, but results have been abysmal. According to the Malaysian Employers Federation, only about 50 are returning a year.

To stop the rot, we need leaders to have the courage of conviction to change the current system and not just harp on patriotism. The plight of the Malay middle class is obviously no different from that of the other communities. Providing an environment that recognises talent and ability while lending a hand to those left behind — regardless of race — are key to a positive transformation. Our political economy requires a complete overhaul and that obviously involves things like stopping corruption and the manipulation of our national institutions.

We must marshal our resources to complete the transition from a low-wage to a high-value economy. Higher wages are  just part of the equation. We must first create an environment where cutting-edge businesses can succeed. We must cut barriers to business and promote inter-ethnic as well as multinational collaborations. Foreign spouses should also be seen as an asset and helped to obtain residency and work.

The quality of life must be improved by providing better schools, hospitals and public transport. The government must cooperate with employees and employers to improve work-life balance issues that used to be relegated to the back-burner in Malaysia. Current innovations in ICT provide endless possibilities to achieve this objective.

Meritocracy, autonomy and flexibility must be expanded in the civil service and academia. This will attract more of the best and brightest. Our lecturers and civil servants must be liberated from the stifling political interference that has held them back for so long.

It is also high time we harnessed the capital, networks and talents of Malaysians overseas. The diaspora, as I mentioned, still care passionately about the country. They can provide capacities Malaysia desperately needs.

Central to these measures is regaining the pluralism that inspired our founding fathers’ struggle for independence. As I outlined in my book, Moving Forward: Malays for the 21st Century, we must promote the idea that Malaysia’s future depends on less, not more, ethnocentrism all round. Yet too many of our leaders are unable to get out of the proverbial tempurung.
Let me end with an old Malay proverb: “Hujan emas di negeri orang, hujan batu di negeri sendiri, lebih baik negeri sendiri.”

Sadly, it seems to be raining stones in our nation more often than not these days. Reversing this deleterious slide in Malaysia’s fortunes and restoring its promise will be the defining challenge of this decade and indeed of our generation.

Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad is the political secretary to the Selangor menteri besar and state assemblyman for Seri Setia. He is the author of Moving Forward: Malays for the 21st Century (Marshall Cavendish).

This article appeared in Forum page, The Edge Malaysia, Issue 796, Mar 8-14, 2010