{
  "id": 12031325,
  "title": "Teori kenapa orang Melayu terima pemimpin perasuah",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/04/teori-kenapa-orang-melayu-terima-pemimpin-perasuah-12031325",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-04T23:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2026/10/05/teori-kenapa-orang-melayu-terima-pemimpin-perasuah"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Many non-Malay people frequently ask me why Najib Razak and Umno remain accepted by Malay people, from the countryside to the highest levels of education. This question follows the issue of Najib receiving forgiveness and house arrest, as well as Umno's big victory in Johor and Negeri Sembilan. The first reason is that many Malay workers, like my two children who work after university with salaries not exceeding RM4,000, pay little or only a small amount of tax. My salary, for example, is reduced by around RM2,500 a month, making my annual tax RM30,000. Compared to a non-Malay colleague who pays RM120,000 a year in taxes with a monthly deduction of around RM10,000, Malays do not feel the burden of paying taxes and some even cheat without reporting income, so they do not pay taxes at all. Therefore, the issue of corruption and embezzlement of public funds for personal benefit and misappropriation of public funds does not concern Malays, as they do not feel the impact of the tax they pay. The second reason is that many Malays work for the government, which is almost 80% Malay, including civil servants, politicians, ministers, and more. Each month, salaries come in, so even if the RM40 billion corruption is not noticed. People say that the country is deeply in debt from paying off the 1MDB, but salaries continue to flow in each month. So, what is the point of discussing corruption? Try one month, if no salary comes in, Umno and Najib could fall, but salaries and other things do come in, so the corruption issue is not effective. The third reason is that there is no one willing to tell civil servants who receive salaries or Malay businesspeople, both big and small, that most of the salaries they receive and public development projects come from tax revenue collected from the public. More tax revenue comes from non-Malays because they are not many working for the government. The collapse of the nation from the perspective of corruption is not noticed because many Malays do not feel the impact of the national debt. Therefore, the leader chosen by Malay people will borrow and borrow from foreign sources while plundering national funds that should belong to the public. The fourth reason is about Islamic education. There are three aspects of Islam that make the corruption acceptable or not condemned by Muslim society. First, the education of religion itself. I have reviewed thousands of Friday sermons, and all the content of the sermons do not explain about tax money and how it becomes wages or development. Corruption seems like a 'minor sin' and it's not easy to understand its impact on the development and welfare of the public in close proximity. Corruption seems like a 'small crime' and it is not made easy to understand its consequences on the development and welfare of the public. Second, the Islamic political campaign is like a teacher from a political party that 'tolerates' corruption. He argues that corruption is not something that can be proven by Hudud laws because it is not in the classical Islamic books. So, if stealing RM200 might lead to amputation, but embezzling RM40 billion is not in the book, corruption appears to have less severity than drinking alcohol, not wearing a hijab, or not voting for an Islamic political party. Third, there are also witnesses from India who live in Malaysia who require Muslims to vote for an Islamic candidate, even if the candidate is weak or immoral, as long as he is Muslim. This is extremely disturbing. In addition, there is a political party that supports heaven as long as their voters, so even if that party has corruption, bribery or defamation, it's okay as long as they fight for Islam in Malaysian politics. The fifth reason is that Malays can go to Mecca, receive free food and bicycles from the Islamic party, and all of these are funded by the Islamic party without questioning where the money comes from. This is the most classic and effective reason. The Malays vote for the Islamic or Malay party so that DAP does not rule the country. My wife says many of my friends also say they have to vote for Umno because they are afraid of DAP taking over Johor and Negeri Sembilan. Malays never count with their fingers how many DAP members are corrupt. Malays are unaware of how many fingers are needed to count how many Malays and Malaysians are corrupt. The promise of DAP to not rule is prevented because DAP is unbelievers and there are Muslims who help unbelievers, so the task as Muslims is already fulfilled, making them eligible for heaven.",
  "summary": "Pendidikan, ekonomi, agama dan sentimen terhadap parti tertentu didakwa antara faktor mempengaruhi sikap orang Melayu terhadap rasuah.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "Teori kenapa orang Melayu terima pemimpin perasuah",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/04/teori-kenapa-orang-melayu-terima-pemimpin-perasuah",
        "published": "2026-10-04T23:00:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}