me-layu dilemma

My boss is a Russian who has been living here in Malaysia for almost 15 years. He married a local girl and they have a beautiful little girl. He loves it here. The food, the country, the people. It is indeed very interesting to hear his view and opinion on Malaysia and the people. He once told me that Malaysia is THE best country to do business because it is easier to negotiate with Malaysian people rather than the rest of the world, mainly the Europeans. He told me that in Russia, a small business like his would not survive at all because of the 'big bullies', meaning the big companies that will do anything to close down all these small businesses. His words, not mine.

However, there are certain comments he made that got me thinking and pondering most of the times. Mostly, the comments he made regarding us Malays, the majority race. I refuse to use the word dominant because simply, we Malays are not dominant even in our own country. Agreed? One of the comments he made was that Malay people are "professional lazers" (as in lazy). Now isn't that one of the many traits we Malay inherit? I could not say I disagree with him because he is simply voicing out what or who he has been dealing with for the past 15 years. That is one comment to be look upon and analyzed closely. Even his father-in-law, a Malay, agrees with him regarding this matter. Malay people are lazy and are very good at giving excuses. Insulted? Don't be. It's a fact.

Then, one fine day, the boss said that he like working with us (my sister and I) and he trust us. According to another boss (there are two of them), it is a rare compliment he was giving because he is not very generous in complimenting others. Believe me, I know. The boss said he never expected us to excel in our work and meet his expectation. He frankly said that he did not have high expectation for Malays but we actually exceed his expectation and proved to him that not all Malays are lazy and unproductive. He even sung praises to my lecturer who was visiting a month before. It kinda shocked me to realize that the boss actually was reluctant to put his faith in us because we are Malays. And no, I did not take any offend because I could identify the issue with him.

I remember once how a certain man in UiTM gave speech regarding Malay people and our mentality. The Melayu term itself suits us, he said. Me-Layu. We are the majority in this country, this golden land was once called Tanah Melayu but sadly, we are being left so far behind in every aspect. We are Me-Layu. The M could apply to everything that's negative that has become the identity of the Malay. M, malas. M, mundur. M, miskin. M, manja (semua nak kerajaan yang buat, nak kerajaan yang tanggung). M, meminta-minta. Embarassed? I am. But still, I am a Malay. There are so many other Malays who excels but they are being overshadowed by these Me-Layu Malays.

"Kita orang Melayu ni pandai cakap saja, sebab tu ramai jadi ahli politik. Dah tu, apa lagi, asyik cakap politik manjang la. Cakap pung pang sana, pung pang sini, kerja haram satu pun tak jadi. Melayu ada tanah pi jual, nak kaya cepat, tak mau nak usaha sendiri. Tau nak kaya cepat, tapi bila dah kaya cepat, nak maintain tak boleh sebab tau nak cari jalan mudah je. Jatuh bankrap pulak. Dapat tender pi jual kat C**a, untung dapat kat depa tu la. Lepas tu dok bising C**a makan duit depa, C**a penipu la apala. Dah tu orang Melayu sendiri dok tikam belakang sesama sendiri, bila nak maju? Pikiaqla sendiri, otak ada payah sangat nak guna!" - a friend of mine, a Malay himself, once said. So, when are we ever going to start to use our brain?