Letter to editor
IT IS preposterous to say that Indians are not marginalised in the country but it is merely that they have failed to utilise the various benefits offered to them.
Nothing can be further from the truth.
I can understand why such baseless remarks are made by politicians seeking to gain favours from the current government.
The Madani government is no different from the earlier race-based governments minus the rhetoric of reforms and inclusiveness.
How can Indians have missed the opportunities offered by the government when the civil service is predominantly of one race or as evident in the admissions to the matriculation and public university programmes which are not in favour of the non-Malays and Indians in particular?
The provision of licenses and permits for Malaysians to engage in business and entrepreneurial activities are prejudiced against Indians.

Are the present deputy Indian ministers telling the Indians are not taking advantage of the opportunities offered by the government.
How can the Indians take advantage when the opportunities are not in favour of them. Don’t the deputy ministers realise that the discrimination and marginalisation of Indians are related to their ethnicity and not ignoring the opportunities offered to them?
Editor’s note: Deputy National Unity Minister K. Saraswathy has recently told representatives of Indian NGOs (non-governmental organisations) that there were various initiatives available for the community.
“The problem is the information does not reach the target group,” Bernama reported her as saying when met after the “Round Table Conference: The Current State of Indians and Way Forward” held on Saturday (Jan 20).
As long as the Indian community have leaders who behave like sycophants, what future are we talking about?
The Madani government might be high on rhetoric of inclusiveness but in reality, it is based on the racial system inherited from the inglorious past.
At least during the days of Barisan Nasional (BN), the Indian community has one Indian Tamil minister. Thanks or no thanks to the Madani government, even this one post has been denied.
So, what opportunities are we talking about that Indians have missed? If the leaders of the Indian community have nothing appreciable to say, shouldn’t it be wise for them remain silent so as not to expose their ignorance? – Jan 22, 2024
10-term councillor in the Seberang Prai City Council and founder of Tamilar Kural Malaysia, David Marshel is now a member of the Urimai (United Rights of Malaysian Party) interim council.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.