MIC living in a dream world, says Hindraf

Hindraf chairman P Waythamoorthy challenges MIC president S Subramaniam to a debate on what the party has done for the Indian community.

Hindraf chairman P Waythamoorthy says even Barisan Nasional no longer trusts MIC to deliver the Indian votes.

PETALING JAYA: Hindraf chairman P Waythamoorthy today said MIC was living in a “dream world” following the party’s claim that its support from the Indian community had increased to 65% nationwide.

He was responding to MIC president Dr S Subramaniam, who said yesterday that the 65% figure was based on a nationwide survey of 800,000 Indian voters.

Subramaniam also said this level of support was higher than the 45%-55% support recorded by MIC in the 2013 general election.

But Waythamoorthy questioned the claim, saying even Barisan Nasional (BN) didn’t trust MIC to deliver the Indian votes.

“That is why in the last general election, BN signed a memorandum of understanding with Hindraf,” he told FMT.

Hindraf’s influence was said to have contributed to a return of some Indian support for BN in the 2013 polls after it signed the agreement with BN with measures to uplift the community.

Waythamoorthy, who was subsequently appointed a senator and deputy minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, resigned from the posts in February 2014, saying the BN government had failed to deliver the terms of the agreement.

Hindraf is currently a strategic partner of Pakatan Harapan (PH). It is seeking to contest in two parliamentary and four state seats on the opposition pact’s tickets.

Waythamoorthy also said MIC had failed the Indians as BN no longer even channelled funds for them through the party, opting instead to work through the Socio-Economic Development of the Indian Community (Sedic).

“In any event, MIC has failed to address the real socio-economic issues faced by the Indian community, and the entire community knows this.

“I would like to personally challenge Subramaniam to a debate on what MIC has done for the community. I will prove him wrong.”

Waythamoorthy had previously claimed that the Indian community supported Hindraf, which could deliver a 20%-30% swing of Indian votes to PH. -FMT