I WELCOME the appointment of Sungai Buloh MP and PKR member R. Ramanan as chairman of the Malaysian Indian Transformation Unit (MITRA).
The other members of the newly established of the new committee are V. Ganabithrau (Klang MP), Senator C. Sivaraajh (MIC), R. Yuneswaran (Segamat PKR MP) and MITRA director-general K. Raveendran Nair.
Under the Barisan Nasional (BN) government of former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, MITRA was known as the Socio-economic Development the Indian Community Unit (SEDIC).
The government used to channel certain amount of funds for the socio-economic development of the Indian community especially those in the lower socio-economic categories.
Despite MITRA’s noble intentions, funds were siphoned off for activities that had nothing to do with the welfare and well-being of the Indian communities. This led to public outcry with some of the organisations that were beneficiaries being subject to investigation by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
I understand that a few individuals have been charged in the court for misappropriation of MITRA’s funds.
I agree that there is need for new leadership to infuse the much-needed energy into MITRA in terms of its service to the Indian public, notably the poor and the unfortunate.
‘Funds hijacked by cronies’
But good intentions alone are insufficient to address the socio-economic woes of the Indian community – a community that has contributed so much to the development of this country but has got so little over the years.
It is too well-known that funds allocated for the benefit of the Indian never reached the target group.
They were hijacked by certain unscrupulous leaders for the benefit of their cronies and families. It is not that governments in the past were extremely generous to the Indian community.
The allocation of RM100 mil can be considered as pittance to the larger needs of the Indian community. Even the funds allocated to the community were hijacked by some organisations that had no interest whatsoever in the well-being of the community.
The provision of funds to MITRA gives the impression that this was the only allocation for the community so much so that Indian organisations and individuals stood in beeline to get hold of the funds.
Unfortunately, by solely focusing their attention on the MITRA funds, they forget about other government ministries and departments that had allocations for the poor, including the Indians.
Learn from past blunders
Both the government and leaders of the Indian community must be blamed for not addressing the issue of funding from a broader perspective.
While the government can give or increase the funding for MITRA, the fact remains that the present funding is minuscule and insufficient.
It is no use appointing new leaders if their hands a very much tied to the availability of insufficient or inadequate funds. Here I am asking the new government of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to provide for substantial funding of the Indians through the reformed agency of MITRA and others.
More than this, I would like to appeal to the unity government to allocate additional funds for the benefit of the Indian community through other agencies.
The new MITRA leadership must take stock of the past, the wrongs that we had committed and how funds were siphoned off for activities that had nothing to do with the welfare of the community.
The wrongs of the past must not be repeated in nefarious and diabolical ways. What the Indian community needs at present is good, effective and sound leadership.
I hope Ramanan has the presence of mind and experience to provide a fresh perspective for the development of MITRA.
It is not going to be an easy job at the helm of MITRA. There is no need to re-invent the wheel of yesteryears. – April 19, 2023
Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy is the DAP state assemblyman for Perai. He is also Deputy Chief Minister II of Penang.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
