NON-Malays would continue to trust a Malay as prime minister as long as Malay leaders remain fair, inclusive, mature and wise, said Umno Supreme Council member Mohd Puad Zarkashi.

He however warned a non-Malay PM would emerge if the Malay leadership is immature.

“The key secret is maturity, wisdom, and leadership. That is the key. As long as Malay leaders are fair, inclusive, mature and wise, other ethnic groups will continue to trust a Malay to be the prime minister.

“If the Malay leadership is supported by those who are immature and unwise, then non-Malays do not need to wait another 100 years to become the prime minister,” he said on Facebook today.

He also hit out at Perikatan Nasional leaders for playing up the issue of a non-Malay PM.

He said it was unnecessary to amend the Federal Constitution to ensure the post was reserved for Malays.

“There is no need to amend the Federal Constitution. Malays have held the PM post for 66 years,” he said.

The issue hotted up after DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang said in a gathering with Malaysian students in the United Kingdom on November 29 that it was constitutionally sound for a non-Malay to be PM.

Following this, Bersatu Youth chief Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal suggested Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim amend the constitution to allow only Malays to hold the post. – December 17, 2023.