Former Penang deputy chief minister P Ramasamy has announced the establishment of a new party, Parti Bersepakat Hak Rakyat Malaysia (Urimai).
The former DAP member said he took the decision after losing faith in the concept of a multi-racial political party.
"The multi-racial political parties that exist now do not represent Indians. For example, DAP and PKR are multi-racial with many Indian members.
"But, what is the state of Indian members in these parties? They (Indian leaders) cannot speak. They need to obey the leadership's instructions. The party's leadership is more focused on their respective races.
"If there are Indian leaders who speak out, then they will be marginalised or fired from the party.
"Therefore, I believe that Indians in Malaysia cannot have hope in multi-racial parties like DAP and PKR," Ramasamy (above) told reporters in Kuala Lumpur.
The former Batu Kawan MP was speaking after the inaugural Urimai event which was themed 'Political power of the voiceless community' and attended by more than 400 people.
Also present were PSM deputy chairperson S Arutchelvan, former Padang Serai MP N Gopalakrishnan, former Bagan Dalam assemblyperson Satees Muniandy, former Sabai assemblyperson Kamache Doray Rajoo and Malaysian Tamilar Kural NGO president David Marshel.
Earlier, David, who is a member of the party's interim committee, said that the application for approval has been registered with the Registrar of Societies (ROS).
"We have made an application for approval. Until approval is obtained, this party will act as a movement.
"We will go all over the country to meet the Indian community to provide political awareness.
"This party is open to all parties, including non-Indians. We will fight for the rights of all the people of this country, especially the Indians," he added.
Walk the talk
Meanwhile, Satees told the government today not to take the Indians' support for granted.
"We have Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim who often touches on 'Thirukkural' (Tamil sacred couplets) in his speech, but he did not take any action or give instructions when the picture of (Indian philosopher) 'Thiruvalluvar' was not allowed in the Tamil language carnival in Kepala Batas, recently.
"More disappointingly, no leader from Pakatan Harapan dares to speak out on this issue," he said.
He then quoted a Tamil saying, loosely translated as: "A king who is not criticised or reprimanded will destroy the country by himself even if there is no enemy to destroy it."
"This is what is happening in the government," Satees claimed.
Meanwhile, Ramasamy said that the new party would not necessarily act as a 'third force'.
"We are ready to work with anyone as long as our demands, especially for the Indians, are agreed upon.
"The goal of this party is to protect the rights of Malaysians, especially the marginalised Indian community," he added. - Mkini
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