Samy Vellu’s last wish: one final car ride

 

S Samy Vellu (left) with former Cabinet colleague Daim Zainuddin (centre) and former private secretary E Sivabalan in 2018.

PETALING JAYA: Former MIC president S Samy Vellu’s last request in the early hours of the morning was to go on one last drive in his car, said his former press secretary, E Sivabalan.

The long-time MIC leader passed away a few hours later in his sleep.

“He wanted his driver to take him on a short drive. I could not believe that was his last wish,” said Sivabalan, who served as Samy Vellu’s press secretary from 2002 to 2008, and as his senior private secretary from 2010 to 2018.

Sivabalan recalled how his former boss would speak about how the public would joke about his command of the Malay language. But the former eight-time Sungai Siput MP was unbothered as long as people understood the message that was being conveyed.

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“He did not mind people poking fun. He would say, ‘At least my message gets across to the people, in whatever language or however I say it’.

“He took it in full stride and would always tell me that I should not be upset. For him, the people were his boss, his masters,” he told FMT.

Sivabalan had known the former works minister since 1988. His first job after graduating from university was as an officer at the MIC headquarters, which was where he started working for the longest-serving MIC president.

He said Samy Vellu had always told him that he was not just his boss but also a friend, and revealed that Samy Vellu started working as a bus conductor before he began his career in politics.

S Samy Vellu with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former MIC president Dr S Subramaniam in 2017. On the left is E Sivabalan.

Recalling the longest-serving MIC president’s love for cappuccino and suits, he said Samy Vellu had even gifted him a few suits over the years.

“It was so that we would both look sharp when we went for our meetings,” he said, adding that he went “everywhere” with his former boss, from international meetings abroad to Parliament sessions.

While he was “deeply shocked” at the news of his passing, he said he was grateful that Malaysia’s “father of highways” had died peacefully.

“He was a charismatic leader and a legend in his time. He still is. His legacy will keep his memory alive,” he said. - FMT