Dr M gave very little to Indians, says Saravanan

Very little funding was given to the Indian community during Dr Mahathir Mohamad's time, compared to the current administration under Najib Abdul Razak, said MIC leader M Saravanan.

In a statement, the Federal Territory MIC liaison chief and incumbent Tapah MP recalled that the funds were channelled by Mahathir's government to the Indians via MIC.

"I (have been) an MP since the year 2000, during Dr M's premiership, and he allocated a matching grant of RM50 million and RM70 million via a special draw (betting win) for the construction of the AIMST University.

"After him, (Abdullah Ahmad) Badawi gave RM198,078,583.17 via special a special draw, making it a grand total of RM318,078,583.17.

"The total construction cost of AIMST was RM506,806,492.52. MIC paid a premium of RM7.9 million to purchase the land from Kedah state government, it was not obtained free.

"The balance of RM188,727,909.35 was raised by S Samy Vellu via various donation drives and bank loans. I am proud to say that AIMST is now worth RM1 billion," Saravanan said.

Other than that, he could not recall other funds given to MIC, or through MIC, for the development of the Indian community, he added.

While not denying that Telekom and Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) shares were allocated to MIC, Saravanan pointed out that they were not given for free, and that MIC had to take out a loan to purchase them.

"The proceeds from the sale of Telekom shares and an additional RM8 million government grant were utilised to build and set up Tafe college in Seremban, while the proceeds from the sales of TNB shares are held under MIED (Maju Institute of Educational Development).

"I must admit that funds were given to Indians across the board during (caretaker) prime minister Najib Abdul Razak’s era. Every year, hundreds of millions (in funds) are given to Indian NGOs." 

Saravanan said even these funds were not channelled or distributed through MIC, but via SEDIC, a unit under the Prime Minister’s Department and headed by Prof NS Rajendran, "at their own discretion and in no way MIC was in control of those funds, as claimed by some quarters".

"Prior to SEDIC, funds were also given to NGOs, Sri Murugan Centre (SMC), Malaysian Indian Football Association (MIFA), NAAM etc. These funds were allocated by the prime minister via the Economic Planning Unit (EPU).

"Mahathir has an elephant's memory and if he could recall more details on his contribution to the Malaysian Indian community, he should reveal the details to the public's knowledge," he added.  - Mkini