Institutional Legitimacy of the Bumiputera in Transformational Leadership Discourse

Abstract

This study examines how the institutional legitimacy of the Bumiputera is demonstrated through transformational leadership discourse at the university level. Five official speeches delivered by the Vice-Chancellor of University Technology MARA (UiTM) during the 101st Convocation Ceremony in 2024 were analyzed to identify the most dominant lexical patterns. The analysis revealed five recurring key lexical items that reinforce the semantic categories of authority and institutional legitimacy, namely ilmu (knowledge), bangsa (nation), maruah (dignity), amanah (trust), and graduan (graduate). These lexical items illustrate how leadership discourse is constructed through three main linguistic strategies, through the use of active affixed verbs to portray progressive action, the selection of ethically charged lexical choices to convey moral integrity, and the development of national semantic fields to strengthen Bumiputera identity. Findings indicate that the lexical item ilmu functions as the foundation of the epistemic field that positions UiTM as an institution of academic authority. The term bangsa is predominantly used to reinforce UiTM’s national mission as a Bumiputera-owned university. The lexical item maruah emerges as a cultural value symbolizing the legitimacy of identity and national honor, whereas amanah emphasizes moral responsibility and trust within academic leadership. Finally, graduan functions as a symbolic representation of institutional success and proof of UiTM’s effectiveness in producing quality human capital. Overall, these five lexical items serve as the core of UiTM’s discourse of legitimacy as a Bumiputera institution, having been recognized across academic, moral, and social dimensions. This study contributes to the field of institutional discourse analysis by demonstrating how transformational leadership language functions as a tool for reinforcing identity and legitimacy within the context of higher education in Malaysia.