THE INDIAN GAMBIT

Politics is the business of winning votes. The way I look at it, the initiatives carried out by both sides of the divide has its fair share of political rhetoric and substance for the upliftment of the community. Without it, we as nation wouldn’t have come this far in terms of infra and social development.

V. Mugilan

Will Najib’s gambit payoff come GE14? He has launched the Indian Blueprint and even tasked a unit called SEDIC to implement the plan under his own PM’s Department. A few weeks back, the newly minted Director General of SEDIC came out to defend the Blueprint as a long term initiative and it is not a carrot for GE14. PM Najib on the other hand, recently echoed his plea to the Indians to vote for BN come GE14 so he could implement the initiatives within MIB.

Now everyone seems to be jumping on the fact that Najib is treating this as an election blackmail and holding the Indians ransom. At this time and age, only a fool would expect generosity without expecting anything in return. Even more so from a politician. Just the other day Prof Ramasamy of Penang coolly mentioned in his article about the ‘Gelang Patah Declaration’ prior to GE13 was for enticing voters but stopped short of mentioning any of its achievements to date.

Indeed we voters know at the end of the day, Barisan or Pakatan are busy courting us to increase their margin of victory come GE14. Let’s not pretend that it’s hypocrisy or its unethical for politicians to make a plea for votes. Politics is the business of winning votes. The way I look at it, the initiatives carried out by both sides of the divide has its fair share of political rhetoric and substance for the upliftment of the community. Without it, we as nation wouldn’t have come this far in terms of infra and social development.

What matters to me is, if any of those initiatives have enriched my life. If it has, then my vote is for you. It’s that simple. Do not waste time berating Najib on what he has said and take a moral high ground. We know hypocrisy when we see one. I would rather if you go and touch the lives of voters like me with substantial upliftment programs.

Let’s be frank here, for Najib to commit such a grand plan with a dedicated unit would not have been easy as he would have faced backlash from the Malay hardliners within UMNO. Yet, Najib has made a bold move, taking a massive risk of counting on Indians to remain in power. We all know PM is fretting over the prospect of losing seats come GE14. This would be a double blow for Najib if the Blueprint gambit doesn’t pan out, which would indeed seal his fate within UMNO.

I have yet to see Pakatan leaders risking their positions and sticking up for the Indians. The Indian leaders are merely a cog in Pakatan’s ‘masala’ wheels. What I hear is that even Pakatan Indian leaders are making a beeline to SEDIC for funding, through their proxy NGOs for community programs. That says a lot about support within Pakatan for Indian programs. Only time will tell if Pakatan Indian leaders will be victorious against supremacists such as Tun M, Anwar, and the Lim Dynasty.