‘You were born here, grew up here and will be buried here’

Datuk Seri Najib Razak said Malaysian Chinese have contributed exceptionally to the growth of the nation, which was why they were not “pendatang”.

Pendatang means immigrant in Malay. The word is often used as a slur to described non-Malays.
“You are the sons of Malaysia.

“You were born, grow up here and when the time comes, will be buried here.

“The reality is that we are here as Malaysians and we must fight as Malaysians with a sense of unity,” the Prime Minister said in his speech as Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman during Gerakan’s 44th national delegates conference here today.

In January this year, Najib had also referred to Malaysian Indians as “the sons and daughters of this soil”.

Later in his speech at the Gerakan conference, Najib  went on to assure the Chinese not to be worried over remarks made by one or two individuals, as BN’s policy was to uphold a multi-racial society based of the principle of moderation and wassatiyah (Islamic moderation) towards a progressive Malaysia.

Citing an example, he said Malaysia is the only South East Asian country to allow for Chinese education to continue, a policy which was “here to stay”.

“But we all must believe that national harmony, cohesion and unity are ideals that we must aspire for.
“There will be great challenges and it won’t be easy because ideally we all must be educated under one roof.”

The BN chairman said once in a while there will be bumps along the way, but the important thing was a clear roadmap ahead.

-The Rakyat Post-