PRIME Minister (PM) Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has said the unity government never sidelined the Indian community.
He pointed out the government’s RM100 mil assistance to the Malaysian Indian Transformation Unit (MITRA), RM30 mil through the National Entrepreneur Group Economic Fund (TEKUN) and other initiatives including the RM50 mil loan scheme of Amanah Ishtiar Malaysia (AIM) to empower Indian entrepreneur especially women in the country.
All in all, outright financial grants and loans would amount to less than RM200 mil. Anwar also mentioned the fact that Indians should not be angry or jealous because Malays are getting more than them.
What Anwar mentioned as financial assistance from the government through MITRA, TEKUN and AIM is the pittance given to the Indian community.
The implementation of the financial assistance programmes is riddled with the lack of accountability whether the funds are reaching the targets groups or individuals.
Needless to mention, it is common knowledge in the country how MITRA managed the funds and how the agency was kicked about here and there.
Even if all the funds reached the target groups, the amount is minuscule and ridiculously small. Anwar should understand that 70% of the Indian community are members of the working class.
It is inaccurate on the part of Anwar to say that the Indians should not be angry or jealousy of the assistance to the Bumiputera community.
Indians ‘bolder” than Chinese
If the financial assistance to the Bumiputera community goes to the poor, the working class and peasants, Indians have no reason to be angry.
However, if the government assistance ends up in the coffers of the rich and connected, then not just Indians but other Malaysians might get angry.
Anwar and DAP leaders are under the impression that fear of the green wave might not give much option to the non-Malays other than vote in favour of the Pakatan Harapan (PH)-led group. Here these leaders are clearly mistaken.
The Chinese might still rely on DAP but Indians are willing to experiment with new political parties and coalitions.
Anwar could not answer the question of a student about Indian discrimination in the matriculation programme. Instead, he frightened the student by saying that the opening of the programme to the non-Malays might be a breach of social contract and the alternative might be worst.
It was essentially an answer that bordered on threat that if Indians questioned the matriculation programme, the Malays might opt for the Perikatan Nasional (PN) opposition.
The point is that the Malays are already with PN. The good thing is that Anwar has stopped his dances to Tamil songs. He has also stopped saying that Chinese, Malays and Indians and others are his children.
Anwar’s reliance on race and religion to perpetuate his hold on power has laid bare his pretensions about Malaysia as one big family. In the last more than one year after Anwar became the PM, the real Anwar has emerged from the earlier confusion.
Anwar is no more the intellectual or philosopher he once pretended to be. He is just an ordinary politician who wants to get by for at least one term by indulgence in divisive politics.
His manipulation of race and religion is to ensure that he stays in power at all costs.
Don’t undermine Urimai
It is in this context that we can understand the pittance allocated to the Indian community while billions are channelled to the Bumiputra community.
To be popular with the Malays and Muslim, Anwar has even presided over the religious conversion of an Indian youth to Islam thereby hurting the sentiments of the Hindus.
Recently, he defied the conventional practice of not appointing an Indian Tamil as the minister in the cabinet. That Anwar can hurt and humiliate the Indian community is because he is surrounded by yes-men and sycophants around him.
These are the men and women who are going around telling that Anwar is the best leader of the country and the future of Indians depend on his leadership.
Moreover, DAP is not an aggressive party like before. Under the leadership of its secretary- general Anthony Loke Siew Fook, the party has lost all semblance of independence and integrity.
It is big shame on the party with the non-Malay leaders giving up dignity and self-respect in exchange for power, positions and perks.
Why didn’t the DAP and PKR leaders speak up on the legitimate concerns of the Indian community?
Why are they rallying in support of the Madani government in anticipation of the Kuala Kubu Baharu (KKB) polls on May 11?
The newly formed United Right of the Malaysian Party (Urimai) wants to expose the Madani government as non-interested in the well-being and welfare of the Indian community.
This is why Indians and others should come together to deny their votes to the PH/DAP candidate – a crony of DAP leader Nga Kor Ming – in the KKB polls.
My leadership of Urimai is not predicated on revenge politics. There is no politics of retaliation on the part of Urimai. Urimai just wants to educate Indians and others how the PH-led government has betrayed the community.
KKB polls is the beginning of the national politics of Urimai. Whether PH/DAP candidate win the KKB polls or not, Urimai is poised enter the mainstream politics.
Urimai hopes that the KKB polls will be the mini-Battle of Waterloo for the Madani government. – May 2, 2024
Former DAP stalwart and Penang chief minister II Prof Ramasamy Palanisamy is chairman of the United Rights of Malaysian Party (Urimai) interim council.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
