Pakatan losing sight of its Indian support

As political parties from both sides of the divide scramble to out do each other in offering promises and handing out gifts to win votes as the general election nears, Indian leaders are moaning that their community is receiving the short end of the stick.

While Indian voters were recognised as a force to be reckoned with in the 2008 general election which saw an end to the ruling BN government's long standing two thirds parliamentary majority, now they feel neglected.

The opposition coalition, Pakatan Rakyat, rose from their 2004 defeat with a renewed sense of vigour, grabbing not only more seats but also seizing a larger role in the country's governance after pocketing five states.

However, a Pakatan leader openly admitted that the opposition is losing the resounding support it had three years ago, when the community turned to Pakatan to vent their grievances against the BN.

"Within the Pakatan (we) didn't create a strong Indian force - I'm not suggesting forming an ethnic based party but more like a task force to address the issues affecting the community.

"I can't deny that we have failed to hold on to the support we had before the 2008 general election," said V Ganabatirao, a long time DAP member and a former Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) leader.

The Indian community albeit a minority group play a pivotal role in ensuring election victories, especially in marginal seats eyed by both the BN and the Pakatan, noted Ganabatirao.

Deep-seated grouses which fueled the frustration of the communitythat eventually led some 30,000 Malaysian Indians taking to the streets on Nov 25, 2007, are yet to be resolved but the ruling coalition has been playing up the issues, making the opposition appear non-committal, he said.

"Indian leaders in Pakatan are not going to the grassroots, not working the ground. Most of them fail to understand the community's needs.

"In estates in Kuala Selangor there still villagers who live below poverty line... similarly in Banting, Sepang, Port Klang and Kapar.

Pakatan has the upper hand

"In Penang, the state administration had elected two deputy chief ministers as representatives of their communities, Ramasamy for example - people look up to him.

Similarly, in the case of the urban poor, Pakatan states have yet to show any interest in providing affordable housing and open up employment opportunities, said Ganabatirao.

"Pakatan Rakayat practises transparency and we don't secure contracts for friends - so the kind of people who expect cronyism - will think about going back to BN."

Despite the hiccups, he cited Penang as a moderate example of having succeeded in reaching out to the various ethnic communities.

"The Indians and Chinese are seeking reforms ad want to see sincere policies and politicians. Pakatan has the upper hand in fulfilling that role. Progress in Penang has proven that the BN can't take back Penang," he added.

Out of the total 222 parliamentary seats, about 64 have considerable Indian voter strength that could tip the scale either way.

The usual BN practice is 10 parliamentary seats reserved for Indians with MIC allocated nine and PPP one.

The majority of Indian voters was generally considered BN's safe deposit before the last general election, but this changed when months before the polls 30,000 took their grouses to the streets with Hindraf spearheading the protest.

And the result was the end of BN's traditional overwhelming parliamentary majority and then prime minister Abdullah Badawi forced to bow out after just one term in office.

Hindraf no longer of consequence

Ganabatirao (right) said Hindraf will no longer be a factor in the next polls.

"Many (opposition) leaders have forgotten where they got their winning votes from. They used the 'Makkal Sakthi' slogan to win votes but now they are not there to solve the community's problems.

"With Najib reaching out to the community directly, the Indians are sceptical, those who depend on the aid given by the government on a day to day basis, especially, are having doubts about voting for Pakatan, although they want a change in government," he said.

Those who are self-sufficient, educated and with better social standing are still with the opposition, but even they are waiting to see aggressive measures committed to the safeguarding of their interests, he said.

He also said that Indian politicians's obsession with Tamil schools and temples has to stop particularly when its youths are sinking into the abyss of vice and social ills.

"But I don't want us to fight again. I have the confidence to rebuild the support," said Ganabatirao , adding that he felt partly guilty for the weakened support base.

"The taxi issues was raised by us - but now it looks like BN is championing the taxi drivers' cause. This are the kind of issues that can help get us support.

"Estate workers for instance, we are fighting for their minimum wagebut nobody wants to ask for a kampung baru (new village) for them when the estate is demolished and they have nowhere to go."

Pakatan elected representatives should be looking at the "small picture" and not just "focus on the bigger picture".

"When governing a state we should be looking for avenues to help the people. Instead of complaining - the Indians had supported us in 2008, although BN poured money then, the support was there, so the question we should be asking now is: why has it reduced?

"We should be saying what we can do for them, force for the introduction of inter race relations act or minority protection act, introduce policies to benefit then.

"We can't blindly keep saying that 'by supporting us we will bring you better governance', if we keep doing that people will expect the sun from the moon," he said.