Can’t we think of a better Malay name for Low Yat 2?

So, one of our many beloved ministers has made a grand suggestion to solve the problem that was caused by the recent Low Yat brawl that happened in Kuala Lumpur.

Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, the minister of rural and regional development, said that it would be a good idea to have a Low Yat 2 for Malay traders to do business.

Because his new Cabinet portfolio now has Mara (Majlis Amanah Rakyat) under its umbrella, Ismail is suggesting that this new place be located at the 3rd floor of the agency’s building.

I guess this is because he feels that the current Low Yat Plaza is being dominated by Chinese traders, so much so that the Malays are being oppressed (hence the brawl?).

As a little bit of reminder for those who might have forgotten, a shoplifting incident caused a racial scuffle outside of Low Yat Plaza on July 12.

Chinese retailers had apprehended the alleged shoplifter, a Malay, and turned him over to the police. Around 200 people, including Malay groups, gathered to protest.

There were strong racial sentiments that night. However, the police downplayed the racial element and insisted that it had nothing to do with race.

But back to the issue of Low Yat 2.

I can see the advantages of having a Malay-only Low Yat Plaza. First, it would mean that the Malays will finally have the opportunity to do business.

As we all know, the New Economic Policy (NEP) that has been implemented in Malaysia for the past 44 years did nothing for the Malays in terms of developing their entrepreneurial skills.

Name me one Malay or bumiputera company that is in operation in the country. See! Even I can’t come up with any. Looks like NEP has not done much.

Second, this initiative will disprove the popular urban myth that the Chinese are only good at conning customers when they do business of any kind.

When Low Yat 2 opens, we can look at it as a social experiment to observe if Malay businessmen will or will not con customers like how they claim their Chinese counterparts do.

But I bet they won’t. As we all know, Malays are subjected to being shariah compliant. Conning and cheating customers in business is definitely not Islamic.

And, since by being Malay you are automatically considered a Muslim, the non-shariah compliance issue logically will not exist.

Third, it would create healthy competition between the two Low Yat Plazas. Then we can really pit the two races against each other and see which is the better race.

So it really would be a good idea to have a Malay-only Low Yat Plaza at the Mara building. I can only see good things happening as a result if this comes into fruition.

The only problem that I see with this idea is that Ismail is referring it as Low Yat 2.

As we all know Low Yat is a very distinctive Chinese name. Can’t he think of a better Malay name? – August 14, 2015.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.