Is Malaysia getting rich too quick?

Is Malaysia getting rich too quick?

By Anil Noel Netto

KUALA LUMPUR: The year 2020 has been listed here as the time when Malaysia would attain the status of an industrialized nations but, going by the increased consumption among its rising middle class, the country has already "arrived".

Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's 'Vision 2020' program has aspired to give the country the same standard of living as Scandinavia in 25 years -- with Malaysians able to enjoy a comparable income level to Europeans, the same health and education statistics.

Long before the target date, however, evidence is mounting that a culture of materialism and crass consumption is fast becoming a way of life among Malaysia's burgeoning middle-class, irrespective of ethnic background. It looks like newly-affluent Malaysians can't wait to live like Europeans.

To be sure, these signs are not restricted to Malaysia. Other East Asian tiger economies like Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia are showing similar trends. But the Malaysian economy is one of the fastest growing -- at a blistering eight percent annually -- and consumerism seems most pronounced here.

Signs of affluence are visible all over Kuala Lumpur: posh bungalows with up to six cars parked on the driveway, swimming pools and landscaped gardens with gushing waterfalls in the back lawn. Inside, the villas have imported fittings and extensive renovations that testify to the owners' newfound wealth. These trappings announce to society that the owners have `arrived.'

Some corporate-types prefer to live in tastefully designed country homes, away from the congestion and pollution in Kuala Lumpur. Membership in exclusive country clubs signals that the holder has reached the upper rungs of the corporate ladder. Holidays? Hop on a plane to Europe, Australia or Disneyland.

Sociologists worry about this trend. "Malaysians are growing through a stage of misguided materialism," says social analyst Jubal Lourdes. "Our development model appears to be centered on materialism and consumerism rather than on people."

Even the government, he says, is becoming profligate. In the center of Kuala Lumpur is rising the world's tallest building. The government is going ahead with the three billion dollar Bakun Dam in Sarawak and a new capital is under construction south of Kuala Lumpur, to be linked by an "information super-corridor".

All this could be a sign of visionary leadership and proof that under Mahathir's guidance -- through good governance, far- sighted planning and ability to think big -- a Third World country has pulled itself by its bootstraps and is fast becoming industrialized. But there is nagging doubt that somewhere amidst all this affluence, a key ingredient is missing.

Sales of flashy European cars have also soared: typically it's a Mercedes for the successful CEO and a BMW for the well-heeled professional. Many among the middle class and the elite scramble to apply for shares whenever there is a company about to be listed.

Successful applicants pocket a tidy profit when they sell their shares immediately after flotation. Other investors snap up property in London or Australia.

The New Economic Policy (NEP), which started in 1970 with the aim of distributing 30 percent of national wealth to the marginalised indigenous community, hoisted many Malays onto the mainstream of the economy. Through affirmative action policies, large numbers of Malays joined the ranks of the middle class.

Many non-Malays -- who initially felt left out by the NEP- benefited as the foreign stake in the Malaysian economy dwindled. Today, as the economy is liberalized, seven out of Malaysia's top ten entrepreneurs are Chinese Malaysians.

The nouveau riche has fueled the ambitions of the middle- class. There's a growing perception in Malaysia that everyone has a chance of getting rich quick as the country prospers, and nobody wants to be left out in the pursuit of wealth. But what is worrisome to sociologists is that increasingly, the perception is wealth can be acquired without hard work -- perhaps by speculating in shares, by investing astutely in property, by using the right connections to clinch surefire business deals.

Even so, not everyone is rich. "The pressure on the lower- middle class to keep up in the race for more wealth is growing heavier," observes Lourdes. "This leads to all kinds of vice -- from indulging in corrupt practices to selling one's soul to make more money."

The nation seems to be experiencing a lot of social ills in the name of progress. Even as sales of designer clothes soar, the gap between the rich and the poor threatens to widen. The 1996 United Nations Human Development Report states that the share of income of the lowest 40 percent of Malaysian households was only 13 percent in 1981-1993. This compares with 21 percent in Indonesia, 16 percent in Thailand and 17 percent in the Philippines.

Although inflation appears under control at 3-4 percent annually, spiraling food and house prices have hit the poor hardest. There are still urban squatter settlements and hundreds of thousands of low-cost houses are desperately needed.

Despite the signs of newfound wealth everywhere, something seems to be missing in Malaysian public life. Social analysts struggle to pinpoint what it is. A deeply-rooted sense of culture perhaps. Or is it a tradition of creative and critical thinking that is lacking?

Perhaps it is the sheer emptiness that unbridled materialism brings about -- the inability of wealth in itself to fulfill society's deepest aspirations. Many are turning to religion to search for some meaning behind the rat-race.

The major religions practiced in Malaysia -- Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism and Christianity -- have experienced varying shades of revivalism; however, even religious rituals seem to be tainted by materialism. The emphasis seems to be on external rituals and symbols -- rather than a deep spirituality that brings out the values in each faith: love, a sense of justice, and compassion for the less fortunate.

"The materialist value system has become ingrained in our culture, which used to cherish simplicity and hard work," says Lourdes. "The sad thing is that the nation is losing the courage and the dynamism to be different."

-- IPS