MIC chastises Lim for ignoring local Indian traders

Chief Minster Lim Guan Eng owes an apology for sidelining their interests at the recent international shopping carnival, says MIC state Youth chief.

GEORGE TOWN: Penang MIC Youth chief J Dhinagaran accused the state government of neglecting local Indian businessmen when it held an international shopping carnival recently.

He said the state government allowed outsiders to come and reap profits through the carnival at the expense of locals, especially with Deepavali just around the corner.

“Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng’s administration priority should have been to create more business opportunities for local Indians,” said Dhinagaran.

He accused Pakatan Rakyat of running a profit-oriented, not people-oriented, political entity.

“He owes an apology to the local Indian business community for neglecting their interests. The Pakatan government has failed to walk its talk over its much-hyped CAT (Competency, Accountability and Transparency) formula.

“Lim has neither been competent, accountable or transparent to Indian traders in Penang, especially in ‘Little India.’

“The ones laughing all the way to their banks are the organisers and traders from India who benefited from the carnival.

“It’s clear the state government’s policies favour outsiders more than locals, who had supported Pakatan which is now enjoying the full benefits of power,” added Dhinagaran.

He said that it would be foolish to expect local Indian consumers to do their Deepavali shopping again when they may have already purchased all their items during the carnival.

Dissenting voices

The Penang International Indian Shopping Festival 2011 was held between Aug 27 and Sept 4 at Penang Times Square and traders all over India took part in it.

Traders and exhibitors from Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Gujarat, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Maharashtra and several Malaysians took part in the event which focused on Indian-based consumer products.

Dhinagaran said the state government should have listened to dissenting voices from the local business community before approving the shopping carnival.

He suggested the state government should have asked the organiser to hold the carnival after Deepavali.

Dhinagaran also claimed that this was not the first time that the state government had neglected the interests of local Indian businesses.

MIC Youth, he said, was not surprised that the state government’s leaders were insensitive to the sufferings of locals because of their non-Penang backgrounds.

“Lim is from Malacca while his deputy P Ramasamy is from Sitiawan. They aren’t bothered about local Indians,” claimed Dhinagaran.