The 1Malaysia concept introduced by Prime Minister Najib Razak is not the same as DAP's Malaysian Malaysia concept as deemed by some quarters, said Johor Menteri Besar Abdul Ghani Othman.

He said this was because, unlike the Malaysian Malaysia concept, 1Malaysia was based on the Federal Constitution.

“What is important is that 1Malaysia is based on the constitution, where the emphasis is on unity of the people in the context diversity and on ensuring social justice."

Abdul Ghani said this when officiating at a talk on the 1Malaysia concept from the perspective of the prime minister, organised by the state government and Johor Information Department in Johor Bahru today.

About 2,000 civil servants and members of non-governmental organisations attended the talk delivered by the prime minister's political secretary Sahlan Ismail, followed by a question-and-answer session.

Abdul Ghani said strong unity among the people was vital to enable Malaysia to move forward and become a developed nation by 2020.

"The people need not worry as the concept is not a form of racial segregation or assimilation as practised in some countries because the 1Malaysia concept accepts, respects and celebrates diversity in society in the spirit of unity," he said.

Abdul Ghani said the government assured that in pursuing development in the next 10 years, no community in the country would be marginalised.

He said achieving the goals of 1Malaysia would bring Malaysia's economy to a higher level where the people would be able to enjoy higher incomes.

- Bernama