KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 16 — Malaysians should continue to be united and stand up to attempts by unnamed groups to split the country apart to fulfil their lust for political power, Utusan Malaysia said today.

In its message on the 50th anniversary of Malaysia Day, the Malay-language daily said the country needs to ensure that it stays united in order to achieve its goal of being a developed nation by the year 2020.

“In this matter, it’s important that the people be wary of the political games of certain quarters that are ready to do anything to grab power,” the Umno-owned paper’s collective editorial voice Awang Selamat wrote today, appearing to allude to the federal opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR).

“This call is right on time because we cannot sacrifice what we have today solely to fulfil the demands of political lust of any quarters,” it added, referring to Sabah chief minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman’s call for unity.

Awang stressed that unity and racial harmony should be prioritised, saying that the Barisan Nasional (BN) administration has tried to take care of the interests of all the ethnic groups in Malaysia.

“Whatever happens, harmony and racial unity has to be maintained and kept. The current government has done everything to ensure that no race or group is sidelined in the agenda to develop the country.

“Because of that, in any moves, the government has never bowed to any demands or pressure that went beyond limits because it can give a bad effect to the racial harmony in this country,” it said.

Last weekend, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak announced the New Economic Model (NEM) to increase the participation of the largely-Malay Bumiputera group in the economy, with the far-reaching affirmative action policy involving RM31 billion in aid and contracts.

The new policy, which is intended to uplift the poor Bumiputera, has however attracted criticism for not addressing the economic needs of Malaysians regardless of ethnic origin.

Awang said that no one would be able to divide Malaysians if they remain committed to unity.

“Awang trusts and believes, as long as Malaysians continue to hold to the attitude of tolerance and maintaining unity among one another and love peace, then there will not be any quarters that will be able to split them apart,” it concluded.