Just give every less fortunate, deserving Indian child scholarship

“I do not want that our loyalty as Indians should be in the slightest way affected by any competitive loyalty whether that loyalty arises out of our religion, out of our culture or out of our language. I want all people to be Indians first, Indian last, and nothing else but Indians.” - Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, Writings And Speeches: A Ready Reference Manual

Here is the thing. When we are talking about the Indian community, we are talking about a specific section of the Indian community.

Really, I have no interest in the petit bourgeoisie or bourgeois class of the Indian community and their so-called issues which are intimately linked with the compromises they have made with mainstream political parties.

You want to know how to help the Indian community, dear leader? Well, how about giving every academically deserving underprivileged Indian child an educational opportunity?

All these cash programmes Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim mentioned in his recent speech at the BR Ambedkar International Convention and Ambedkar’s 133rd birth anniversary celebration are the kind of cash handouts that have not worked for decades and indeed only encourage the kind of bureaucratic malfeasance and feudalism that further injure the Indian community.

The only poverty alleviation programmes that have worked are those that ensure that young underprivileged children get an education and that they have proper school facilities and a stable home environment.

Why do you think young Indian student activists are begging the government to ensure that underprivileged Indian children have a fair deal when it comes to educational opportunities?

Not only do they have to face the horse manure “pull yourself up by your bootstraps” nonsense from another minority community which controls the private education system in this country, they have to deal with a system which targets them simply because they are poor and from a minority which does not have much political and economic clout.

When Anwar arrogantly dismissed that young Indian woman (ironic because the prime minister said of BR Ambedkar “His commitment to women’s rights was a primary concern”), what he was really doing was silencing the voice of the underprivileged that he claims he wants to champion.

And why do you think that these young Indian students speak up about the quota system and the uneven playing field of the educational system? Because they understand that their parents cannot articulate their grievances due to the lack of skill sets that social mobility brings, more often than not.

All are responsible

Indians cannot rely on political parties to represent them. Whatever promises are made to the Indian community do not mean much. How, exactly, if the community is not a significant voting bloc, will those who break promises be held accountable?

Here is a short polemical view of the MIC. The MIC, or CashMoneyBrothers as I like to refer to them (to understand this reference, readers are encouraged to watch the great Wesley Snipes movie, “New Jack City”), played a major role in the dismal situation of the Indian community but the reality is, Indians themselves are also to blame for their misfortune.

Voting members of the Indian community (generally poor and disenfranchised) voted for the MIC and BN believing the propaganda that they spewed because the reality for them was much worse. Better to vote in hope than not at all.

Meanwhile, the bourgeois class either abstained from voting out of disinterest in the thug politics of the MIC or general apathy towards the political process.

This, of course, did not preclude them from embracing indulgent Indian “cultural” societies or attending glittery Indian society events, both of which had the grubby handprints of the MIC.

What Hindraf managed to do - and did really well - was to wake up an apathetic Indian middle class to the plight of their less fortunate brethren.

How exactly does a community improve when its political leadership, either establishment or opposition, are constantly telling them that they are there because the votes of the Malay and Chinese effectively advocate on behalf of their community?

Politicians understand the problem but…

This is not to say that mainstream political parties like the DAP have not had Indian political operatives who understood the problem. Here is then Klang MP Charles Santiago in 2017 when another prime minister was throwing breadcrumbs at the underprivileged Indian community.

“In fact, (then prime minister) Najib’s (Abdul Razak) instructions came after a ribbing by MIC president Dr S Subramaniam, who brought up the issue of 745 eligible Indian students who were unable to get places in public tertiary education institutions.

“If I may ask, why weren’t they given a spot in the first place? Why do politicians and the prime minister have to interfere, if the system offered places based on meritocracy and not other considerations, such as race and religion? Vulnerable students from all communities should be given priority and not offered places as an afterthought.”

I can’t remember what happened to Santiago. Oh, that is right. He was canned but given a really good parting gift. Mind you, I am not saying that Santiago would not do a good job but this is politics and everyone eventually gets touched.

Former Klang MP Charles Santiago

This is why when I hear that someone like former Penang deputy chief minister P Ramasamy, who should and does know better than to attempt to start another party to champion the Indian cause, I just shake my head because it is another cynical attempt to manipulate a volatile class of people into voting (let’s face facts) against their self-interests.

I mean, start with this. Start small. All that money thrown at various alleviation programmes for Indians could be funnelled into something like an education project.

There are enough NGOs and pressure groups representing the underprivileged of the Indian community who could point to students who desperately need help either in the public or vernacular school education system. Just start there and build on that.

I’ll end with another BR Ambedkar quote - “Equality may be a fiction but nonetheless one must accept it as a governing principle.” - Mkini

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S THAYAPARAN is Commander (Rtd) of the Royal Malaysian Navy. Fīat jūstitia ruat cælum - “Let justice be done though the heavens fall.”

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.