Oleh/By : DATO' SERI DR.
MAHATHIR BIN MOHAMAD
Tempat/Venue : TECHNOLOGY PARK MALAYSIA,
KUALA LUMPUR
Tarikh/Date : 01/11/99
Tajuk/Title : THE OFFICIAL VISIT TO MIMOS
At events like this, I usually begin by saying how
honoured I am to have been invited. This morning is
going to be a little different.
2. You see, MIMOS and I go back a long, long way. So
long in fact that I was actually present at its
conception. And given that kind of relationship, I
fully expect to be invited to happy occasions such as
this one.
3. My involvement with MIMOS began in August 1984
when a young academic came to see me about creating an
R&D institute in microelectronics.
4. Back in those days, the Malaysian electronics
industry was as Malaysian as¬Disneyland. Although it
was physically located in Malaysia, Malaysians were
just the "kaki tangan", the arms and legs required to
churn out those foreign products. Much to our
irritation, Malaysian employees were not even allowed
to create simple software. Everything had to come from
overseas.
5. The solution was for Malaysia to conduct her own
research into microelectronics. The technology would
then belong to us, and no one would be able to tell us
what we could or couldn't do. For the very first time,
Malaysia would design and manufacture its own
microprocessors.
6. The rest, as they say, is history. Although with
an organisation like MIMOS, perhaps I should also say
that the best was yet to come.
7. Fifteen years later, we are gathered to celebrate
MIMOS' third anniversary as a corporate body. And of
course this is also a wonderful opportunity to thank
the various organisations that have helped to make this
early example of "Malaysia Boleh" a success.
8. Without the support of various Government agencies
MIMOS would never have survived - let alone thrived. I
would like to thank colleagues and officials for
seeing the potential in MIMOS and Malaysia, and working
so hard to realise both. The Minister of Finance then
agreed to allocate five million ringgit - a princely
sum indeed.
9. The private sector too has been immensely helpful
- so much so that many of the National IT Council's
programmes could not have succeeded without your help.
Thank you for your vote of confidence. I sincerely hope
you will continue to give MIMOS the financial and moral
support it needs to give all Malaysians access to the
benefits of Information Communication Technology
(ICT).
10. Finally, I must thank a very special group of
public and private sector individuals: MIMOS Berhad's
Board of Directors. Thank you for introducing the
systems and processes that this ex-Government agency
lacked. Your contributions will continue to be
essential in ensuring MIMOS' credibility and, indeed,
efficiency as a corporation.
11. Going back to the future, I would like to spend
some time considering MIMOS' value to the nation. We
are, after all, fully entitled to do so. Fifteen years
ago, I played the role of venture capitalist on behalf
of the Malaysian Government. And all of us here are
stakeholders in this institution by virtue of the taxes
that end up with the Ministry of Finance - MIMOS'
shareholder.
12. Right from the beginning, MIMOS demonstrated its
prescience by identifying the most significant ICT
trends. More importantly, this young organisation had
the confidence to act on its foresight. There was, so
I've been told, no "sihir' involved, no crystal ball.
Nevertheless MIMOS seemed to "get it" and get it right.
13. Take the Internet for example. In the 1980s, the
Internet was still a geek's gizmo. However the geeks at
MIMOS decided it was going to be big, very big, and
immediately set about creating RangKom, an early
manifestation of JARING.
14. Of course they were right. But to those of us back
in the dark ages of ICT, they must have appeared like
Noah of old, building his ark in defiance of so called
common sense. Today, the Internet has over 196 million
subscribers and the figure is growing exponentially.
The flood has arrived and thanks to MIMOS, Malaysia is
equipped to navigate these uncharted waters.
15. But MIMOS isn't just about geeks with a gift for
fortune telling. It's also about the ability to see
beyond the technology to the people who will be
affected by it.
16. In the early 90s, MIMOS was asked to lead IT
policy development through the National IT Council or
NITC. Before long, your CEO was back in my office
asking me to chair the council. I must admit I was most
unwilling: I was already chairing more committees than
I cared to remember. Actually I was scared to display
my ignorance of the subject.
17. But he was not easily deterred. After explaining
that ICT was going to transform society as we knew it,
he concluded with a challenge no patriot could resist:
"If you really want to see this transformation take
place in the way we envision our future development,
then you are the only person who can chair the NITC."
18. What could I do but agree. With trepidation but
instantly. Leading Malaysia into the e-world wasn't
something that came naturally to me. I knew little
about ICT: even less than I'm supposed to know about
economics and finance.
19. However, I have always believed that anyone can
learn new tricks. In fact, according to certain
quarters, I'm now rather an expert in these matters. If
you need proof, just consider this: I have already
introduced my own terminology to this dynamic field -
the word "de-confuse". It's a very useful term to use
when dealing with geeks. You can use it to interrupt
lengthy explanations, as in "Please de-confuse me."
Or if that doesn't work, you can always try, "I asked
you to de-confuse me but I'm still confused."
20. In the mid 90s it became evident that Malaysia
would not achieve Vision 2020 by relying on
industrialisation. We had to find a different route.
21. The answer to our dilemma was ICT, but ICT in what
form? Most people assumed that Malaysia would just
follow the leaders. But in this warp-speed
environment, the leaders don't have all the answers.
They don't even have all the questions.
22. The second option was to bury our heads in the
sand and hope that all this bothersome technology would
somehow disappear.
23. With the help of MIMOS and other consultants,
Malaysia did it her way. To almost universal acclaim,
we created this huge experiment called the Multimedia
Super Corridor or MSC. Today the MSC is on track to
become the best incubator in the planet for high-tech
businesses; a special greenfield environment where
companies from all over the world will be able to
collaborate in new ways and reap the rich rewards of
the Information Age.
24. Of course the recent economic crisis gave our
critics the opportunity to wet blanket our enthusiasm.
But I have always welcomed criticism from unfriendly
quarters: I take it as a sign that I must be doing
something right. Indeed, if you think through the
issues, the MSC is the only way forward for a country
such as ours. Countries that drag their feet in
developing the new information highways will also tend
to become backwaters of economic activity.
25. I mention MIMOS' involvement with the MSC for a
reason. As the Government's highest-level ICT think-
tank, MIMOS often works behind the scenes,
accomplishing its mandate quietly but effectively.
Publicity per se is not on MIMOS' agenda. Helping
Malaysia be the best she can through ICT, is.
26. Many people think that MIMOS isn't interested in
profit. That is nonsense. MIMOS is vitally interested
in profit - but not for itself. As a mission-driven
R&D institution, MIMOS' mandate embraces nothing less
than the "profitability" of an entire nation: the
achievement of Vision 2020 through the social and
economic opportunities of ICT.
27. The question then is "Is MIMOS succeeding?" I
believe the answer is "Yes". Today, experts tell me
that the MSC has put Malaysia on course for a tripling
of our GDP by 2020. I won't be around to see this
happen. But I sincerely hope that MIMOS will.
28. In Malaysia, we believe in ensuring access and
equity for all. We also believe that technology makes
a wretched master but an excellent tool. It is
important that we use ICT wisely, according to our
values and culture. And the only way to ensure both
access and appropriateness is to take charge of
technology development ourselves.
29. Take the continued Western domination of the media
for example. We could have resigned ourselves to the
fact that "kancils" don't stand a ghost of a chance
against the "gajahs" of this world. We could have just
ignored them and gone our own way.
30. The other option, of course, would have been to
fight it out. I don't believe in running away from
fights - but I am a little choosy when it comes to
picking my opponents. There is wisdom in avoiding
wrestling with pigs: the pig enjoys it and you both get
filthy.
31. However with the advent of JARING, Malaysians are
now explaining Malaysia to the world. By enabling
access and equity, we have also given Malaysia her
voice - the voice of her citizens.
32. In today's knowledge economy, R&D is crucial.
Organisations like MIMOS, which exist to develop
technologies that benefit all Malaysians, must be
supported.
33. This kind of state intervention is anathema to
many. But as the progress of ICT has shown, the state,
not the innovative entrepreneur in his garage, was the
initiator of the Information Technology Revolution. How
else but by state intervention, can we expect to
accelerate technological modernisation and change the
fate of our economy in just a few years?
34. Right now, the culmination of Vision 2020 is less
than 20 years away. Through organisations like MIMOS,
the Multimedia Development Corporation, and the support
of all Malaysians, we will transform ourselves into an
informed society, totally equipped to enjoy a quality
of life our grandparents could never even have
imagined.
35. The Government will therefore continue to
support MIMOS. Not because MIMOS needs help, but
because Malaysia does.
36. In return for that support, I would like to see
MIMOS and the MDC working together to help a brave new
breed of entrepreneurs: the cyberpreneurs or
netrepreneurs. Think of MIMOS as our Starship
Enterprise, the flagship of a fleet of cyber
businesses. The flag it carries is nothing less than
the national consciousness for the knowledge society
and knowledge-based industries.
37. But more than that, this mother ship will actively
encourage these fragile cybercraft. It will share its
expertise, thereby giving cyberpreneurs the confidence
to go where no businessman or woman has gone. And it
will always be on standby to help its fleet establish
new colonies in cyberspace.
38. In the 1400s Leonardo da Vinci imagined - as
sketches in his notebook - aeroplanes, helicopters and
parachutes. But as we all know, it took centuries for
these conceptions to become products. In da Vinci's
time the gulf between the probable and the possible was
just too vast.
39. Now all that has changed. Today's 21st century
cyberpreneur is limited only by his imagination. Until
quite recently, human beings could only hope to control
physical space, the everyday world of atoms. At the
dawn of the new millennium, our span of control is
almost limitless. Using cyberspace - which literally
means the virtual space of control - we can track and
influence events on the other side of the globe.
40. In the new knowledge economy or K-economy, a
person who relies only on the physical space of control
will be as handicapped as a man with only one leg. To
run with the best, you need to use both dimensions.
41. MIMOS is here to encourage Malaysian Leonardos who
want to make their mark in cyberspace. It is here to
help you realise your ambitions. It is here to help
make things happen for you.
42. As with Starship Enterprise, the idea is to create
a self-supporting system that promotes everyone's
existence. As a Government - funded institution, MIMOS
is not in the business of competition but of
cooperation. It is here to develop a web of
interdependent, mutually- supportive cyberbusinesses
working on the frontiers of the K-economy.
43. I look to MIMOS to act as the catalyst for this
kind of large-scale cooperation. To do this, you will
have to convince others to dream with you so that your
vision of "a better tomorrow" becomes a Malaysian
reality.
44. Congratulations MIMOS on your third anniversary as
a corporate entity. May you use your powers wisely to
help Malaysia enter the e-world. You already have a
good track record. All we ask is that you continue to
amaze us.
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