{
  "id": 6258551,
  "title": "Nazir Razak, Musa Hitam say NEP fostered ‘tongkat culture’ among Malays",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/08/nazir-razak-musa-hitam-say-nep-fostered-tongkat-culture-among-malays-6258551",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-08T08:10:26.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Malay Mail",
    "slug": "malay-mail-malaymail",
    "url": "https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2026/09/08/nazir-razak-musa-hitam-say-nep-fostered-tongkat-culture-among-malays/234430"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Former CIMB Group chairman Tan Sri Nazir Razak and former deputy prime minister Tun Musa Hitam have criticized the New Economic Policy (NEP) for fostering a culture of dependency and focus on ownership among Malays. Speaking at a forum titled \"Remembering Tun Abdul Razak: Architect of Malaysia’s Development and Nation Building,\" the two former leaders argued that the NEP should be reviewed and that education and professional development should be given greater emphasis instead of the distribution of shares and ownership. Nazir stated that the NEP, originally intended to run for only 20 years, had become deeply ingrained in Malaysian society. He warned that if the policy continued for too long, it would perpetuate a \"tongkat culture\" of rent-seeking and dependency. Musa echoed these sentiments, asserting that the policy had made Malays overly reliant on government assistance and created a sense of insecurity, with recipients feeling that assistance was insufficient and demanding more.",
  "summary": "KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 8 — The New Economic Policy (NEP) fostered a culture of dependency among Malays and became too...",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "NEP cultivated culture of dependency, say Nazir Razak and Musa Hitam",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/08/nep-cultivated-culture-of-dependency-say-nazir-razak-and-musa-hitam",
        "published": "2026-09-08T07:11:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Malay Mail",
        "title": "Nazir Razak, Musa Hitam say NEP fostered ‘tongkat culture’ among Malays",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/08/nazir-razak-musa-hitam-say-nep-fostered-tongkat-culture-among-malays",
        "published": "2026-09-08T08:10:26.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "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."
}