'Waytha will not be pushed out by ministers'

Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department P Waythamoorthy will not be pushed out of the government by cabinet ministers bent on seeing him go, says Persatuan Hindraf Malaysia adviser N Ganesan.

"Waytha is not going to resign because of his cause. He is going to continue to try to materialise the memorandum of understanding (that Waythamnoorthy signed with the BN just before the 13th general election of May 5).

"That is what he is in government for. We consider these (calls by the ministers that he quits) as just incidents along the way," Ganesan (left) told Malaysiakini.

He added that Waythamoorthy, who was a founding member of the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf), remained steadfast that the ministers who were critical of him should instead work with him on the problems faced by Indian Malaysians.

Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein and Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin Abu Bakar, have called on Waythamoorthy to step down for criticising the police in their handling of five gang- members who were shot dead in Penang.

Waythamoorthy joined the government after he entered into a pre-election pact with the BN, under which the coalition agreed to implement Hindraf's five-year blueprint to uplift the Indian Malaysian community.

Ganesan said the only thing that would make Waythamoorthy resign would be if he failed to push the government into implementing the blueprint.

In a statement issued later, Ganesan called on Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to expedite implementation of the blueprint.

He lamented that the unit headed by Waythamoorthy in the Prime Minister's Department has yet to be named; neither has its charter been publicly confirmed.

"Najib must expedite work on blueprint'

The government's expert steering committee, which is to propose specific plans for income opportunities, housing and skills training for displaced estate workers, has yet to be identified, Ganesan said.

Furthermore, he said, the unit's infrastructure had yet to be purchased and its budget allocation has not been deliberated, let alone the planning for next year's budget.

"The process seems to be painfully slow. It is ironical that, on the one hand we have this situation with regard to crime being addressed in a hurried manner with these shootings and arrests, and which do not assure sustainability anyway.

"On the other hand, we have a plan that promises to be a sure and sustainable remedy and which will have long-term positive effects that is being effectively delayed," Ganesan said.

He pointed out that the large involvement of Indian Malaysian youths in gangsterism was due to their displacement from their traditional abode in the estates.

He called on Najib to implement the blueprint with the similar rigour that the government now has in combating crime.

"The current lacklustre and half-hearted approach is not going to win the hearts and minds of the affected Indian estate workers whose expectations are sky high because of the public promises during the recently-concluded general election.

"If Najib fails to keep his promises, he is looking at the imminent resignation of Waythamoorthy from government and we believe this will permanently shift the Indian voter completely away from BN on a long-term basis," he said.

Ganesan added that a report card on the status of the implementation of the blueprint would be prepared next month to update the Indian Malaysian community on its progress.