In the aftermath, Mirzan Mahathir chose to retract the report that sparked the controversy, a retraction which in turn caused Professor Lim Teck Ghee to resign in protest.

Mirzan is president of the Asian Strategy and Leadership Institute (Asli), while Lim is the Director of Asli's Centre of Public Policy Studies (CPPS).

Mirzan is the boss, and if the boss chooses to compromise, he must have his own reasons. Lim isn't just a normal employee but an academic with a resolute and independent spirit, and he has the right to defend the results of his research.

Lim could not accept Mirzan's decision, neither could he be cowed by the vicious attacks on his research that were made by various politicians. He remained true to his standpoint, choosing to resign rather than to sacrifice his integrity and dignity.

It is unfortunate that rational academic research and public debate with the potential to bring about social reform has been quashed in this manner. Deliberately avoiding the topic does nothing towards finding a solution for our society's ills.

The controversial report, titled "Corporate Equity Distribution: Past Trends and Future Policy" was originally conducted at the request of the government. It was meant to be used as a reference for drafting the 9th Malaysian Plan.

The report's conclusion is that bumiputera equity isn't 18.9 per cent, but rather it has already reached as high as 45 per cent. In addition, it advised the government to place less emphasis on the division of equity, as such a practice would not only hurt the economy, but also the development of the bumiputeras.

Frankly, this is nothing new. In the past, the Malaysian Chinese Association had conducted its own studies which showed that bumiputera equity had surpassed 30 per cent. These findings had been submitted to the Barisan Nasional government but were ignored.

The idea that the New Economic Policy (NEP) might do more harm than good is also old hat. Mahathir has said so and Anwar recently repeated those sentiments. Even Pak Lah has criticised the NEP in the past.

Professor Lim's research approached this important issue that directly affects Malaysia'sdevelopment from a scholarly perspective. This independent, non-partisan research effort was conducted with the interests of our nation and people at heart. Its findings should not be casually dismissed and it should be considered an important asset to society.

If the authorities were more liberal, then this research could have been the beginning of a combined effort between the government and the public to address problems with government policy and administrative methods. It could have been an opportunity to address and solve the country's economic malaise.

At the very least, the research findings ought to have been debated publicly and fairly. Even if the research was flawed, critics would have been able to state their arguments and corrections.

However, once the report was made public, it quickly became politicised and even became a racist issue.

Some said the report was malicious and promoted discontent. Others said the report was biased because it was conducted by a particular race. There were also those who said the report was rubbish, that should be retracted, or "stern" measures would be taken against those involved.

Asli suddenly became a rebel organisation instead of a think tank, while Professor Lim (an international academic who was highly thought of in universities and the UN) was portrayed as a dastardly villain plotting to destroy our nation.

If we disregard the political benefits, then the question of equity becomes a purely economic concern. If we do not examine current policy based on accurate figures and statistics, how can we discover the problems and come up with solutions to solve them?

The country is currently experiencing problems such as sluggish economic growth, a wide disparity between the rich and the poor, as well as weak production and competitive ability. These are warning signs informing us that the policy is flawed.

If the authorities continue to deny the existence of these flaws and reject constructive criticism, then they are only compounding the problems.

Lim's resignation doesn't mean that anything has been resolved. The problems have only been covered up, and everyone is just pretending that everything is fine.

The report and Professor Lim will become yesterday's news and soon be forgotten, until one day the problems can no longer be hidden and everything falls apart. By then it will be too late to do anything.

Sin Chew Daily is a member of Asia News Network

Tay Tian Yan

Sin Chew Daily

Kuala Lumpur