Thaindian News

Kuala Lumpur, April 1 (IANS) The “One Malaysia” concept is vital to recognise the contributions made by Malaysians of all races towards the development of the country, said Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak, who is expected to take over as the country’s premier later this week.
Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmed Badawi is scheduled to meet the royal constitutional head of the state Thursday to resign and make way for Razak.

Media speculation is that Razak might be sworn in Friday. But he refused to confirm or deny this, The Star newspaper said.

Razak sought to explain his concept of “One Malaysia” Tuesday by choosing to visit Sin Chew Daily, the largest Chinese media group, in an effort to better understand the sentiments of the Chinese community.

Malaysia is a multi-racial society with a population of 28 million that has majority Muslim Malays, about 33 percent Chinese and eight percent ethnic Indians.

Although Islam is the state religion, there are millions practising different faiths, including different denominations of Buddhism and Christianity.

The ethnic Indians are mostly Tamil Hindus, who came here during the British era.

The country has about 100,000 Sikhs.

Razak stressed on the need for cooperation with the media, a prickly point in the country’s socio-political life.

“I took the opportunity to explain some matters, including the concept of ‘One Malaysia’, and how important it is for members of the administration to have a relationship in the form of cooperative engagement with the media,” he said.