I RESIGNED from DAP and all state government agencies a few days before the last state elections in August 2023.
After the formation of the unity government at the state level, there seems to be systematic purge of Indian employees who were hired during my tenure in office.
Two employees of the Penang TechDome were terminated from employment on flimsy grounds. The real reason had to with the fact they were hired when I was the chairman of Penang TechDome.
However, those non-Indians who were hired including the present CEO were untouched.
Presently, the two employees have taken the matter of unfair dismissal with the industrial relations department of the Human Resource Ministry.
Additionally, a few long-standing employees of the Penang Hindu Endowments Board (PHEB) were terminated from employment recently.
No reasons were given other than the fact that they were employees based on contract. It is obvious that they were terminated because they were employed during my tenure.
These individuals who were terminated are in midst of pursuing legal action against the PHEB for unlawful termination. If the PHEB could terminate its employees arbitrarily without giving valid reasons, then what hope is there for employment of Indians in this statutory body?
‘Purge because they support me?’
Similarly, a few Indian employees in the Penang Water Corporation (PBA) are being continuously harassed and their lives made difficult by certain sycophants identified with certain leaders.
Hundreds of Malays, Chinese and Indians were recruited during my stint as the former chairman of human resources in PBA, Penang Development Corp (PDC) and other state agencies,
Why only Indians are identified as my supporters to be purged?
My question is why only Indians are victimised on the grounds that they were close to me and not the non-Indians? Not just the Indians, I enjoyed a good rapport with non-Indians in the state agencies.
This racist discrimination and victimisation of Indian employees seems not to have caught the attention of the members of the state executive council (ECO) members and Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow. As usual, Chow pretends that everything is fine in the state of Penang.
Can Chow explain why there is this systematic discrimination and termination of Indian employees in certain state agencies in Penang?
Is there an unwritten policy on the part of the state to terminate employees especially Indians who are considered close to me during my tenure in office?
Aren’t Indians citizens of the country entitled to equal and fair treatment? If I was responsible for the intake of employees in the state agencies, then hundreds of them should be terminated, not Indians alone but the Malays and Chinese as well.
I therefore urge Chow to set up an independent investigative committee to look into the unjust and unfair discrimination of Indian state employees.
The committee should determine the real reasons as to why employees in TechDome and PHEB were terminated. Furthermore, steps must be taken to see why Indian employees of PBA are constantly targeted and ridiculed.
If there is an opportunity, I am prepared give the details of the employees who were terminated and those being harassed.
Urimai, the United Rights of Malaysian Party, takes the issue of racial discrimination of Indians and other ethnic groups seriously. – Jan 7, 2024
Former DAP stalwart and Penang chief minister II Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy is chairman 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.
