MIC leaders, not Mahathir have failed the Indians

Indians not only suffer from a dire lack of government funds but also good leadership and the erosion of their democratic, ethnic, religious and cultural rights.

COMMENT

By P Ramasamy

Finally we hear it from the mouth of one of MIC’s senior leaders that they were nothing but “beggars” during the administration of Dr Mahathir Mohammed.

According to S K Devamany, MIC deputy president and deputy minister in the prime minister’s department, the MIC would only get a paltry RM1 million from Mahathir for Indians on a yearly basis. Former MIC president S Samy Vellu had to literally “beg” Mahathir for allocations to the Indian community.

However, this changed under Prime Minister Najib Razak, who has been very generous, providing financial assistance of RM80 million to Indians.

In the words of Devamany, Najib can do this simply because he puts the interests of the rakyat above anything else. For this reason alone, Indians must vote for Najib in the coming general election and not be misled by the false allegations perpetrated by the opposition against the government.

In a roadshow held to debunk the criticisms of the opposition, Devamany also warned Hulu Selangor residents to be vigilant about their children falling under the influence of the opposition.

Devamany’s speech although aimed at propping-up the administration of Najib, was an admission that MIC leaders had failed the Indian community for many years. If they had to “beg” Mahathir for bread crumbs, then what was the party doing all those years? Why did leaders like Samy not admit in the open that Mahathir was against the Indian community?

However, under Mahathir, Samy, who functioned as MIC’s president and minister of public works never uttered a word about the difficulty of working with Mahathir. Nor did he say that the Indian community did not benefit from financial assistance. On the contrary, as I recall, Samy was full of praise for Mahathir and on numerous occasions remarked that Indians had progressed extremely well under the former prime minister’s administration.

But Devamany, having kept quiet all these years, suddenly seems to have a different story. It is understandable why he is praising Najib; he has no choice for his job is on the line. But why should he descend to such a disgraceful level by describing MIC leaders as “beggars” under Mahahtir? The MIC is an extremely weak party in the BN, a fact that is known to everybody in the country. Only after Devamany’s speech will many now realise that the party leaders were not only weak but also behaved like “beggars” when it came to representing and articulating the interests of the Indians.

Why blame it on Mahahtir now and not before? Why did MIC leaders like Samy not take Mahathr to task for ignoring the plight of the community? If the MIC failed the Indian community, they should have resigned en bloc from the Barisan Nasional (BN) during the time of Mahathir, paving the way for the party to quit the ruling coalition altogether.

Whatever happened to all the bravado of MIC being the only party that could represent the Indian community? How come the “mother” party of all Indians in the country could allow itself to be bullied and marginalised by Umno leaders like Mahathir? How come Samy the “big bully” of Indians kept quiet all these years and said nothing about the sad state of affairs during the time of Mahathir?

MIC’s deputy president should be more careful in what he says and does. He should exercise more responsibility and dignity when making an objective analysis of the performance of the party before Najib became PM. As deputy president and senator, he should be careful of his choice of words. If a deputy president can put down the party, then what can we expect from others who have been critical of the party for so many years?

Umno might be the perpetual problem hindering the emergence of the MIC as a dignified party for the Indians, but surely the blame is not entirely with Umno leaders.

MIC leaders like Samy who helmed the party for so many years must surely be blamed for taking the party to the point of no return. Najib might be more generous in terms of dishing out funds, but surely the problem with Indians in the country is not about getting the right amount of funds, but about poor leadership and the erosion of their democratic, ethnic, religious and cultural rights.

In brief, Indians are considered second or third class citizens of Malaysia.

MIC leaders under Najib have not addressed broader and more fundamental issues that stand in the way of the progress of the Indian community. Finally, even if Najib is generous in handing out funds, I am not sure whether rank and file Indians are the actual beneficiaries of these handouts.

Umno has experienced leadership change, but there is no leadership change in the MIC. Samy might not be there but he administers the party through his “proxy”, the present MIC president S Subramaniam.

P Ramasamy is Deputy Chief Minister II, Penang. -FMT