| When auto king Yahaya Ahmad was killed in a helicopter crash in March, all Malays mourned. The shock was palpable; thousands attended his funeral, including Malaysia's royals and the prime minister. Yahaya, aged 50, was seen as the Henry Ford of Malaysia, an outstanding example of the successful local entrepreneur. Not only was he responsible for building up a successful company, he was expected to make the dreams of ethnic Malays come true. Just six months before he died, Yahaya seemed to demonstrate just that ability. Chairman of the company which makes the modest Proton national car, he paid £51 million for a controlling interest in British sports car maker Lotus International, one of the top design marques in the global industry. Yahaya, it was thought, would put Malaysia on the world map. Ever since the it emerged from years of British colonial rule, Malaysia has been intent on improving conditions for its majority Malay population, which was poor and dominated by the greater commercial clout of its ethnic Chinese citizens. In the 1980s, after years of affirmative action for Malays and government spending on education and training, a new class of Malay businessmen began to emerge. |