The Brunei Malay dilemmas
By Bakar Jair

Haji Razali

"We the 'Melayus' should not just talk about our rights, we should not be so assertive as we plead for the helping hands, we should not appear to be so demanding in asking for the extensions of the helping hands."

"We should instead be more aggressive to generate trust and confidence in helping one another as a community. We should be more proactive and collaborative in fulfilling our shared responsibilities towards building a better community."

This sentiment was expressed by Haji Razali during a private conversation. Feeling a little dejected in not getting the required support for moving his programme of building the 'community,' the President of the Malay Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Brunei Darussalam shared his thoughts, trials and tribulations with me.

"We should not just wallow in our misconceived shortcomings. We should not feel sorry for our self imposed feelings of inadequacy," he continued.

"We have the challenge before us of fulfilling the national vision of fostering a more disciplined, self reliant and caring community. We should aspire and raise up to the vision of 'Rakyat Melayu' as leaders of industry and commerce," echoed Haji Razali of the national development objectives.

A vision of 'Rakyat Melayu' as leaders of industry and commerce

The national development objectives of creating a better community and increasing meaningful participations and involvement of the 'Rakyat' have been around for many years.

The intentions of energising the 'Rakyat' has had many different interpretations and many outcomes the most prevalent being those associated with the maladies of the 'Malay Dilemmas.'

Instead of raising the spirit and energising the 'Rakyat,' it has created expectations of charities, subsidies, handouts and Ali Babas. There are of course many success stories but these successes had to overcome the main hurdles of the 'Malay Dilemmas.'

'There are many of us who feel so branded with the 'Malay Dilemmas' that we continue to be mediocre in our performance, to be half hearted in the way we go for opportunities and lethargic in the development of our businesses.

We have to go through a "paradigm shift," "attitude, gearing and optimism shift" or what is known as the "break point re-engineering".

This is the programme and plan of actions that we need to look at. This "paradigm" shift is a social process of re-energising the drive for success. This is a collaborative culture that goes beyond "kongsi", and "keritsu". This is something deep like "persaudaran", "kejiranan" and deep concept of "sahabat".

Haji Razali continued on his insightful debate and thoughtful deliberations. He kept shaking his heads to express the irritating frustrations and a slight sign of indignations showed in his animated smiles. His white hair growing less and thinning shows the signs of the years of stress and anxieties.

"I don't know" he suddenly said, "There are so many demands on being the elected President. There are so many things that are expected of me as a person and the expectations of the post of President. Sometimes you are expected to be the spokesman, sometimes you are suppose to be the chief negotiator, sometimes you are regarded as the representative of the members and sometime you are there to receive the bad news and the bad publicity.

But when you want to introduce change for the better, when you want to create an organisation, an environment where members can and will begin to help each other then you have problems. People and members resist you, look at you with distrust and suspicions"

"I share the national vision of 'Rakyat Melayu" as leaders of industry and commerce. This is a very clear national vision but it is muddied by many other considerations and there are blinding flashes of expectations of easy money and handouts for the Malays.

This clear vision is sometime clouded by the expectations of continuing "special and differential" treatments for bumiputras. On the other hands, there are biases and there are "stereotyping" based on the maladies of the "Malay Dilemmas". There are however many more times where the people are pleading for the chance to prove that we can fulfil that vision of the progressive 'Rakyat Melayu,' lamented Haji Razali.

"Persaudaran, Jiran and Sahabat"

Haji Razali bin Johari is in his mid fifties with a legal background has successfully set up joint venture companies with big names such as Federal Express and Port of Singapore Authorities.

These are the two big ventures among the small but lucrative activities he has put together over the years. He is a nice man easy to talk to and has a genuine interest in fulfilling the visions of 'Rakyat Melayu' as the captains of industry and commerce.

Listening to his passion of pursuing the MIB visions and the community value concepts was very interesting and raised my curiosity and aggravated my ignorance on the subject.

I had to do some homework and look into the meanings of "Kejiranan", "Persaudaran" and the basic principles behind "sahabat". These are all very simple ideas of being good to one another, being responsible for one another. These are all based on the universal values of living in a civil society and building a caring community.

My quick homework revealed references to sets of high values and the ideals of building a good community. The value of caring for one another under the relationship of "persaudaran", being aware and sensitive to neighbours are part of the social ideals promoted under the concepts of "kejiranan". The sharing of high ideas for the common good and a collective commitment to a visions under the bonds of "sahabat", are all very well defined under the system and values of an "Islamic ummah". All these concepts and good sounding social values ring many bells of "good governance" and "civil community". There are many who do not consider these as relevant in the competitive environment. There are many who are driven by self-interest and operate in the laws of the jungle.

There are those who operate in the Ali Baba's world of complacency, contentment and out to get something for nothing. For me I think Haji Razali is right. He is right in bringing to light the ideals and values of a caring community and reminding the members of the Chambers of the human and social faces of prosperity and re-igniting the community senses of the members of the National and Malay Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

Catching up with the Yuppies in Brunei

There are many calls and urgings for a more dynamic socio economic progress and many speeches and statements for greater openness to competitions in the development of Brunei Darussalam. Many foreign observers and foreign consultants are "pressurising" the community to adopt more aggressive policies and the implementations of accelerated and fast track programmes and more commercially focused strategic plans.

These are echoed by the so called "yuppies" in Brunei. The Bankers, the "Professionals" of foreign based consultants, auditors and other business services, the CEOs of Government linked corporations like DST, RBA, and Brunei Shell and LNG. They all seem to echoes similar support for a "hurried" growth. There are many conferences, seminars and other promotional activities that call upon these same people to drum up the messages. But the reality is that Brunei has adopted a more sedate and steady approach to development.

The authority appears to be more comfortable with the concept of balanced development and feel very easy with the soundness of sustainable growth. It looks as if Brunei is learning lessons from the past, they maybe learning to look beyond the blinding glitters of prestigious projects. It looks as if they are learning to control the effervescent of enthusiasms and contain the bubbles of over optimism of fast track projects and avoid the short-lived accolade of accelerated growth. The ideals of balanced development, sustainable growth with emphasis on active and meaningful local participation are the forces that restrain the unleashing of untamed jungle of capitalism. Balanced growth stops the aggravations of social frictions and the moderator of social injustices.

The "yuppies" talk about competitions and competitiveness but the survival of the SMEs very much depend on an environment conducive to "co-evolutions". The "yuppies" are trumpeting "Michael Porters" competitiveness and competitions but they have under played the "supply chain" and the co-evolution concept of the "community" of supporting industries. The "yuppies" are shouting open competitions and under play the concept of cooperation. The "yuppies" are going for innovations and new opportunities but seem to neglect the "break points" in consolidations, collaborations and cooperation.

We hear much from the articulate "yuppies" but we know little of the SMEs needs and wants. We hear little of the views from the SMEs but we have plenty of policies, programmes and activities to promote SMEs and local products. There are concerns about the small and weak private sector. There are programmes to promote entrepreneurs and there are programmes to promote SMEs. There are policy statements which call for the encouragements and the nurturing the development of "Rakyat Melayu" as leaders of industry and commerce. There are policy statements that relate to fostering of a more disciplined, self reliant and caring society. What we hear, what we are told and what are being promised are all very encouraging. But some how there is a lack of "umph" and a lack of passion in pursuing the vision of "Rakyat Melayu" as leaders of the industry and commerce.

Conclusions

A western philosopher once said, "the passionate are the only advocates who always persuade. The simplest man with passion will be more persuasive than the most eloquent".

Is there a simple passionate Malay leader among us who can persuade us to work together, help one another to make life better for all. Is there a simple passionate Malay who can get the Malay business community to work together. The fragmentation of the Malay business community in Brunei Darussalam is very open. Conflicts and rivalry fester among the community not just between individuals but groups of individuals.

"The issue in the Malay Chambers of Commerce and Industry is that members are competing with one another. They look at each other as rivals rather than "sahabat" "jiran" and "bersaudara". Many of the members have ignored the good sense and the value sets in the "good community". Helping one another, working as a team, extending the helping hands and expanding the networks and the business circles. Many members feel that the office bearers are there to pursue their personal interest and promote the private business and their private enterprise. It is sad," lamented Haji Razali. "I am still trying to put the programme together that would change the image of the Chambers into a "community". Perhaps we need to look at re-engineering the organisation into a "community". Perhaps we need to look at the concept of "ummah" and prepare more community development activities attuning towards an "enterprising community".

Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin