MIC HAS DONE NOTHING: Malaysian Indians left to scrape the waste cans

It’s now a blessing that the country has a two-party system – Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat. MIC, UMNO or Barisan cannot go on hoodwinking the poor Indians after being in power for 55 years. With four states – Penang, Selangor, Kelantan and Kedah – now under Pakatan the poor Indians are beginning to feel the change and difference in their destinies.

Seemingly, the welfare of the poor Indians is not neglected in these four Pakatan states. Understandably though, because of limited resources at the state level not much can be done to help this ethnic group unless the present Federal Opposition takes over the government in the next general election – expected to be held any time before April next year.

Left to scrape the waste cans

It’s estimated that over 70 percent of the Indians living in this country – the majority of them the descendants of estate labourers who were brought into the country during British rule as indentured labourers to work in the rubber plantations and build roads and railways – are living in pitiable conditions.

UMNO and MIC have neglected them for a long time since Independence. They will only approach this group before elections to secure votes and just after fortifying their selfish needs these poor Indians would be left to scrape the waste cans.

With the present two-party system, the Indians today are well represented in both Pakatan and Barisan. In fact, the equation has favoured Pakatan more than Barisan since the 2008 general election. A change of government at the national level in the next general election is expected to bring optimisms for the underprivileged Indians, as can now be seen in the states under Pakatan rule.

Poor Indians living in states under Pakatan rule – Selangor and Penang especially – are beginning to see their destinies changing. However, it’s still an uphill task to change the mindset of these poor Indians though, as MIC has failed them for the past 55 years. The self-seeking leaders in the party have only made use of the poor Indians in the past for them to cling on to power.

UMNO and other Barisan component parties on their part would only seek Indian votes with empty promises for the community, also with the intention for them to stay in power. Beyond that, these marginalised Indians are left to eke a living on their own with so little opportunities for them to climb up the economic ladder.

Indians need sincere leaders

The poor or underprivileged Indians need sincere leaders who could help to reinvent their mindset so as to uplift their economic status, as their destiny lies on their own hands now. Their fate depends on whether they want to change or sink in this land of opportunities.

They now have a choice either to vote for Barisan or Pakatan in the coming general election to ensure a better future for them.

To achieve change, they need to go through a sort of mental revolt in order to transform their outlook towards politics and life. Successful Indians, social leaders, volunteers and Indian politicians in the country have to be aware of the needs of these marginalised Indians. They have to support the government that is earnest in helping the deprived Indians.

They could play a very influential role to help transform the Indian mindset in order to assist the community to uplift their social and economic status. They need to assist the government that is taking serious efforts to help improve the living standards of these displaced Indians.

The poor Indians need leaders who could keep on showing them the path of optimism to shed their attitude of negativism, discover the value of quality life and transform themselves to prosper in life. A mindset cloaked in pessimism, fatalism and being too obsessed with the hypothetical aspects of religion or Tamil schools would drag them further back.

Could not depend on MIC or UMNO

Continually expecting others to help them out or offer them goodies just before elections is not going to resolve their predicament in the long run. They should have the will to reject leaders who are corrupting their minds with short-term bribes.

It is a fact that a significant portion of the Indian community in the country does face abject poverty. A striking percentage of the poor are plunged in irreversibly chronic alcoholism and other social delinquencies such as drug abuse, gangsterism and other forms of social violence due to poverty and poor education.

They also, by race, dominate the prisons in the country. All this is in part due to their unconstructive upbringing and they being misguided in life, as there are no constructive role models in the family and surroundings to emulate. They could not depend on MIC or UMNO leaders, for that matter, to change their mindset.

Many Indians were displaced in society after the post-independence period and subsequent economic changes in the country. They lost their jobs in the estates that were developed for other economic purposes. Many estate Indians, as a consequence, were left jobless and homeless. They began to settle in urban peripheries as squatters. Without proper education and collective awareness, many were even left ‘stateless’.

Many of their offspring have thus ended up remaining benighted with some engaging in notorious activities to let go their frustrations or earn a living.

The Tamil education they received for a few years in many of the dilapidated and decrepit schools in the estates with untrained teachers have not contributed much to their progress. Regrettably, in most cases, these children would never make it further than the six-year education they receive in Tamil schools.

Many MIC leaders have not convinced them of this matter, probably, for some vested reasons – the poor Indians have always been used in the past as their fixed vote vault.

What's more, despite the myriad of problems faced by the Tamil schools in most areas, some Indian politicians are still adamant that they should exist and they keep on harping that the government should help them. The surreptitious motive that many observers sense is that this is for the political survival of some leaders, and this is done at the expense of the poor Indians.

A responsible government

The rich among the Indians would not send their children to Tamil schools. Most of their children are found in private or international schools and some are sent abroad for an English education.

Little do some MIC leaders realise that many Tamil school pupils drop out the moment they enter secondary school. The dropout rate among Indian pupils is only second to the Orang Asal in the country. One reason is that they could not cope with education at the post-primary level, as they do not speak nor understand the National language or English.

Most Tamil school dropouts end up knowing to speak only Tamil and they end up being unemployed.

Social leaders, politicians and successful Indians are not helping the underprivileged Indians enough to realise that in the context of the Malaysian society, it would help a lot if these poor Indian children attend national schools until completion.

They have to learn to accept the reality that ultimately they have to complete their studies in the secondary national schools. They would then from the start learn to mix with other races and they would also end up having a better outlook in life – shading themselves off from their past blurred disposition.

How much can the society do if the community itself does not have the drive to change its way of life? It’s the way of thinking of the poor in the Indian community that has to be shaped. Blame MIC for this setback, as it had not done much to change the mindset of the deprived Indians for the past 55 years.

It’s the long-established ‘class system’ in MIC that has deprived the poor Indians of a better livelihood. As for UMNO, it’s the ‘divide-and-rule’ policy that has given the party some advantage in politics.  This is where MIC is trapped.

The Indians need progressive leaders who could help change the mindset of the poor Indians. This can only be achieved under a responsible government. There has to be a strong will among leaders to help change the fate of these poor Indians. This must come through proper and progressive education, financial assistance, job opportunities, positive surroundings and exposure.

The dilemma of the poor Indians, plight and image should resonate across all the ethnic Indian groups in the country and Malaysians in general under a responsible government.

A change of government

These poor displaced Indians are not really into seeking political power. They of course need sincere leaders who could voice their plights and concerns for a better livelihood. The poor Indians were too naïve in the past and had before 2008 always voted for the incumbent (Barisan) no matter what hardships they faced in life.

Despite their plight and downtrodden life they were then still subservient - helping Barisan to stay in power for many years. But with the advent of a two-party system in the country the poor Indians now have a choice. They can make a change that could bring them better hopes in life.

Post-2008 saw some changes to the livelihood of the displaced Indians in some states. A change of government at the national level in the next general election would certainly see more opportunities for the downtrodden Indians in the country.

Malaysia Chronicle