Further to Dr. Mahathir's recent blog about the Chinese being the "king" in Malaysia, I just want to add a few points. The facts point that the Tong Yen 唐人are one of the richest people in the world. Tong Yen (Cantonese) is the word used to describe this diaspora, taking the cue from the people of the Tang Dynasty - the Chinese most successful period.
That the Chinese Diaspora is well entrenched in SE Asia is an indisputable fact. Many of these economies where Chinese immigrants have migrated to have enjoyed the enormous benefits from their labor and entrepreneurship in spite of the handicaps and discrimination. Professor Wang Gung Wu, who is the leading authority on the study of overseas Chinese, even called it "eunuch wealth". By this he meant wealth that cannot translate naturally into political power, for two reasons. One, because wealth of overseas Chinese is gained in an environment without legal and institutional guarantees. Therefore, just as wealth can be easily made with the right political connection, it can be taken away by the state just as quickly. Second, because overseas Chinese are constantly under the suspicion of having pro-Beijing allegiances.
There has been some guesses as to the totality of this wealth. I have seen reports that have valued it from $1.5 trillion to over $3 trillion. This would place this collective wealth in the top 2 or 3 economies of the world. Wealth buys influence! Let us take a page out of the other dominant economic race, the Jews.
In the US the Jews, who constitute only 2% of the population, dominate most of the important institutions: academics, politics, the media, the professions, and particularist organizations that influence the American culture. Forty-five percent of the Jews live in the United States, 35% in Israel. And the incredible influence of this small group of people has resulted in a vast transfer of wealth from the United States to Israel, due mainly to the political power of the Jewish lobby. And behind this incredible power lies two important facts: Jews have an inordinate amount of wealth (due largely to their high intelligence) and they are extremely cohesive or ethnocentric (that is they belong first to the nation of Jews).
In the Malaysian context, it is the same. With less than 30% of the population, my research reveals that they control 40% of the local wealth despite the discriminatory policies of the NEP. Had this "control" be lifted, I am sure the Malaysian GDP will rise significantly. I think a more meaningful measure would be to measure the negative effect to the Malaysian economy if the Tong Yen factor was removed or curtailed? I believe this was what TDM referred to in his article.
Discrimination against success is common. The Jews continue to be persecuted. For the Chinese, the US even had a Chinese Exclusion Act ( Passed in 1882, the Chinese Exclusion Act was a climax to more than thirty years of progressive racism. Anti-Chinese sentiment had existed ever since the great migration from China during the gold rush, where white miners and prospectors imposed taxes and laws to inhibit the Chinese from success. Racial tensions increased as more and more Chinese emigrated, occupied jobs, and created competition on the job market. By 1882 the Chinese were hated enough to be banned from immigrating; the Chinese Exclusion Act, initially only a ten year policy, was extended indefinitely, and made permanent in 1902. The Chinese resented the idea that they were being discriminated against, but for the most part they remained quiet. In 1943, China was an important ally of the United States against Japan, so the Chinese Exclusion Act was repealed; however, a lasting impact remained. The act was both cause and effect: it came from decades of Chinese discrimination, and initiated decades of Chinese exclusion.)
My point is this, the Tong Yen has suffered all kinds of persecution, mostly in silence unlike the Jews who whined and used the power of the media they control to express their anger and gain control through sympathy.

Notice now that Beijing is guarded against this. Their investments now come with several caveats like ensuring that the host country allows employment of Chinese nationals, as Najib was forced to accept. This is a history changing step and speaks loudly about the increasing influence of China in the world arena. My guess is that it is this arm-twisting that got Najib to repeal the 30% bumiputra ownership policy. His DNA would never have allowed him to make this voluntarily.
I also believe that there might be many more concessions made behind closed doors. The DAP should increase their efforts to ally themselves to Beijing. Beijing's economic clout will be a formidable influence.