This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on January 14, 2016.

When Malaysia’s second prime minister Tun Abdul Razak Hussein passed away on Jan 14, 1976, he left behind a country that was brimming with potential. For many years afterwards, it was still common to hear people describe Malaysia as blessed by nature, a model of racial harmony and a showcase of human development for the Third World.

Though it could be said that the people were shocked into an acute sensitivity to race relations by the traumatic race riots of May 13, 1969, it is clear that the measures that Abdul Razak introduced after that tragedy, particularly the game-changing New Economic Policy (NEP), paved the way for a new era of social engineering that has defined the nation’s development.

Today, 40 years after Abdul Razak’s untimely death at 54 years of age, Malaysia has become greatly transformed on very many fronts.

Unfortunately, along with its achievements in economic and human development, it has in recent years descended into a venomous pit of communal discord and religious intolerance that threatens to roll back all that have been achieved.

In this context, the question naturally arises — what would a visionary leader like Abdul Razak do today to steer the nation out of its current predicament?

Some clues may be gleaned from the landmark changes that he had introduced in his time.

Among the defining emblems of Abdul Razak’s rule was the Rukunegara, the five-point national philosophy that was promulgated following the May 13 incident to speed the nation towards a cohesive healing. For a nation simmering with racial tensions, the Rukunegara’s soothing prescription emphasising justice, cultural diversity, the rule of law, a progressive outlook and positive values provided an inspiring guidepost for charting the way forward.

The Rukunegara was the fruit of the National Consultative Council that had been established to foster solidarity among Malaysia’s diverse peoples, in recognition of the indispensable need for bonding among the various communities if a national consciousness were to become firmly rooted in their midst. 

Interestingly, the idea of establishing a similar council today to bring together a broad spectrum of the country’s leaders to chart a new direction for the nation has been put forward by CIMB Group chairman Datuk Seri Nazir Razak, the youngest son of Abdul Razak and brother of the current premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

At least three points should be contemplated in relation to this proposal from Nazir.

The first is a recognition that the problems that are weighing down the country are so fundamental that nothing less than a total reorientation of national principles will be sufficient to point the nation towards an upward trajectory once again. Hence, the need for an inclusive, open-minded national consultation to formulate new approaches to national development and a host of emerging issues. 

A second point is the realisation that the current development paradigm, based on the then revolutionary NEP, has deviated so significantly from its stated goals that it requires a complete rethink for it to meet the larger goals of social and economic equitability that formed the bedrock of the original policy.

Thirdly, the qualities that Abdul Razak displayed in his public life — particularly the spirit of public service, integrity, frugality and simple living — are especially relevant today.  More of our politicians and those in power must emulate these virtues as the larger public interest must prevail over selfish motivations if we hope for a sound resolution of the nation’s problems.

Further, as an essential prerequisite for this national reorientation, the challenge for our leaders is to together rise above the divisions that are separating us in politics, ethnic and racial relations, and regional sentiment in a spirit of national reconciliation.

For this, we have the example of Abdul Razak’s leadership in forging the Barisan Nasional coalition to draw together the various divergent forces in the political arena of his day that had resulted in the debacle of the 1969 general election. 

Clearly, as we ponder the way forward for our troubled nation, there is much in Abdul Razak’s public-spirited leadership that can provide inspiration for the solutions we need to adopt to bring us together again after a fractious few years.