The government has sent a wrong signal over a disputed report on the bumiputera corporate equity ownership that led to the resignation of academic Dr Lim Teck Ghee, a vocal ruling politician said today.

Lim, a director of Centre for Public Policy Studies (CPPS) under local think-tank, the Asian Strategy and Leadership Institute (Asli) tendered his shocked resignation yesterday after his report ruffled the feathers of many in Umno.

"Discussion with the CPPS and others on these issues could have been held and a consensus arrived at. Instead, the government lambasted Lim," said Penang state executive councillor and Gerakan leader Dr Toh Kin Woon (photo) in a statement today.

"The signal seems to be that dissent is not to be tolerated and honest pursuit of knowledge discouraged. This is indeed a sad development and seems at odd with the government's professed aim of wanting to make our country a more open, transparent and liberal society."

Toh is a former economic lecturer in a local university during the 70s.

Exemplary action

Elaborating, he pointed out the controversy would not have arisen should the government had been more open and receptive to views challenging its own findings.

"The government could, and should, have instructed the relevant agencies to be more transparent on the data and methodology used to compute the bumiputera equity ownership share," Toh asserted.

On Lim's move, the politician commended it as a "brave and principled" stand.

"The action of Lim is resigning rather than meekly toeing the line of his superiors is indeed exemplary and ought to be emulated by all," said Toh, in referring to Asli president Mirzan Mahathir who had said the report "cannot be vigorously justified".

Toh, who is a member of Penang's state government, described Mirzan has made a "rather unprincipled position".

The politician also commended Lim's decision to relinquish the post in defence of the disputed report as a refreshing departure "from the culture of compliance and subservience that the ruling elites in our country attempt to cultivate".

Look at real issue

Meanwhile, Johor Baru MP Shahrir Samad said although Lim is entitled to his rights to resign in protest, that will not help to resolve the dispute now put before the public.

"I think it will not resolve the matter. Asli should sit down with the government or the Economic Planning Unit as to how the statistics are arrived at," Shahrir told reporters after chairing a meeting at the Parliament building in Kuala Lumpur today.

He however opined that the real issue behind the dispute is efficiency in the economic system.

"There must be no leakages (in government projects), government projects must be tendered out, there must be competition and less direct negotiation, even within the government sector.

"If we miss the point and argue whether your statistic or mine is correct, then we could miss the whole point," he added.

The study - entitled 'Corporate Equity Distribution: Past Trends and Future Policy' - put bumiputera corporate equity ownership at around 45 percent, more than double the official figure of 18.9 percent.

This led to strong reactions within Umno. Among those who had rubbished the findings were party president and Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, vice-presidents Muhyiddin Yassin and Mohd Ali Rustam.

Former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who is Mirzan's father, also criticised the report.

Don't challenge our data

In a related development, Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak expressed hope that government's version of bumiputera equity ownership would not be disputed by anyone.

"We do not want something done that causes discord. Possibly, at the beginning, such discord would be seen as intellectual discourse but if it touches on sensitive issues, it could hurt the feelings of certain races and could be regarded as sedition even though that was not the intention," said Najib according to Bernama.

While stressing that the government stood by the accuracy of its numbers, Najib hopes it will also be accepted and not be debated further.

"We have explained in public statements about the basis of the calculation made by the EPU (Economic Planning Unit) all this while and all quarters concerned had understood the methodology used by the EPU," he said.

"It would have been better to just submit the (study's) findings to the government instead of making them public," he added.