Malay leaders must step up

AS we celebrated our 58th year of independence, and approaching Malaysia Day, I believe there is still much that we can learn from our forefathers.

A lesson of significant importance is the role that Malay leadership played in achieving nationhood. This was a Malay leadership spearheaded by Umno that was compassionate and progressive, providing citizenship status to those of Chinese and Indian ethnicity without sacrificing Malay interests, and avoiding the extreme paths then occupied by the communists and ultra nationalists.