FORMER DAP stalwart Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy has hit out at “sycophants and apple polishers in the Indian community especially in Pakatan Harapan (PH)” who are singing praises about Budget 2024 as being an inclusive budget for Indians.
He further claimed that such action is elementary because “these sycophants want to safeguard their miserable positions in the party and the government”.
“Praising Prime Minister (PM)-cum-Finance Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is seen as way to ingratiate themselves to the benefit of peanuts thrown at them,” the former Penang chief minister II penned in a media statement.
“It is not about Anwar’s yeoman service to the Indian community. Despite his drama, Anwar cares little about Indians but his own political survival. This means playing the majoritarian game.”
Added Ramasamy: “These Indian leaders without any legitimacy in the Indian community are hardly in a position to represent let alone to speak about the sad state of the community – how the community has been taken for a long ride by successive governments in power.”
Very broadly, the champion of Indian interest is of the view that Budget 2024 is no different to earlier budgets under the Barisan Nasional (BN) or Perikatan Nasional (PN) governments. He deemed the recent budget as having nothing substantial to offer to lift the socio-economic status of the Indian community – the majority being members of the working class.
“It (Budget 2024) has basically dished out pittance or peanuts to Indians. Unlike others, Indians have not been the recipients of substantial benefits from the budget for next year,” lamented Ramasamy.
“In democratic countries, the numerically smaller and economically weaker communities are taken care first before the majoritarian community. However, the reverse is true in Malaysia especially under the much-hyped Madani government.”
Apart from the usual peanuts to the Malaysian Indian Transformation Unit (MITRA), some handouts were given to Tamil schools, places of worship and for entrepreneurial development. But these allocations, according to Ramasamy, are nothing to be proud of and no reason to heap praises on Anwar or the Madani government.
“Anwar is either a great actor or chameleon; he thinks that by quoting some verses from the Thirukural (the ancient text Tamil text), he could entice the support of the Indians,” teased the former three-term Seberang Perai state assemblyman.
“Dancing to the songs of the famous Tamil movie actor MG Ramachandran (MGR) is no guarantee that Anwar is great hero to Indians.
“At the end of the day, Anwar is no different to the politicians in the BN or UMNO. He might not be crude as the former PM Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad but certainly flexible in pushing the Malay majoritarian agenda especially when he is not sure about the stability or longevity of the Madani or unity government.” – Oct 16, 2023
