Things are looking up for MIC

When G Palanivel took over the MIC presidency nearly two years ago, he had two mammoth tasks ahead of him – to unite the various factions in then fractured party and to recapture the Indian votes that Barisan Nasional lost in 2008.

He can be proud of the remarkable success he has achieved in the first task.The second task is much more difficult. In 2008, about 65% of the Indian votes were against BN. MIC contested nine parliamentary seats and won only Segamat, Tapah and Cameron Highlands. It recaptured Hulu Selangor in a by-election in April 2010.

As the 13th general election approaches, many observers, including a major section of the Indian community, are wondering whether MIC can increase its representation in Parliament or even retain its four seats.

Palanivel has a subdued public face, especially when compared with his predecessor, S Samy Vellu. But still waters run deep. Those who know him well can testify to his visionary character and his diligence in pursuing progress for Indians. He is never short of innovative ideas for the uplift of the community.

In his quiet way, he has scored several notable achievements in the past two years, one of the latest being the government approval of RM100 million for renovations and upgrading works at Tamil schools. And he has obtained special permission from the prime minister to have these works undertaken by Indian contractors.

Another milestone in his political career was obtaining RM180 million for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) run by Indians. As a result, thousands of these entrepreneurs, sole proprietors and petty traders are expected to expand their businesses.

Palanivel is also working very closely with the Public Services Commission to increase the number of Indians in the civil service by 3,000 by the end of this year. He is also pushing for the promotion of Indians in the civil service, especially those who have been stagnating in their jobs for too long.

Also, for the first time in the Malaysian history, Palanivel has requested a special allocation in the 2013 national budget for activities to enhance the living standard of Indians, which would include opening up opportunities for their education.

The Indian community is following all these developments closely and the hatred towards MIC has largely been defused, thanks to Palanivel’s leadership style.

Positive reaction

He recently presented to the prime minister MIC’s list of proposed candidates for the coming election, and it is believed that the PM’s reaction has been positive.

Palanivel has confirmed his intention to contest in the election, but has been keeping everyone guessing which seat he is eyeing. The guesses include Sungai Siput, Teluk Kemang, Kuala Langat and Cameron Highlands.

Although he has often visited and resolved issues in all four places, the strongest speculation seems to be that he has decided on Cameron Highlands. Last week, he again visited the hill resort. Among his activities there was to meet with 100 NGO leaders. He stunned a Chinese audience of politicians and civil society leaders by speaking in fluent Mandarin.

As the president of his party, Palanivel has the prerogative of contesting anywhere, including Cameron Highlands. The incumbent for this seat is SK Devamany, who has won it twice. In the last election, Devamany beat DAP’s J Apalasamy by more than 3,000 votes. MIC is tipped to retain the seat by an even bigger majority in the 13th general election.

MIC is also expected to retain Tapah with a bigger majority because its first term MP, M Saravanan, is known to have taken care of the constituency well. In 2008, he obtained 14,084 votes against the 11,064 garnered by PKR’s Tan Seng Toh.

Hulu Selangor also looks safe for MIC. P Kamalanathan won it against PKR’s Zaid Ibrahim in the 2010 by-election. It is perhaps worth noting that Palanivel went all out to campaign for Kamalanathan.

Segamat, currently held by party deputy president Dr S Subramaniam, is safe as well. In 2008, he received 15,921 votes against the 12,930 garnered by his rival, DAP’s Pang Hok Liong. In the next election, Dr Subramaniam is tipped to win by at least 5,000 votes.

Sungai Siput is a traditional MIC stronghold although it fell to the opposition in the 2008 political tsunami. It was held by two MIC presidents in the past. VT Sambanthan occupied the seat from 1955 to 1974, when Samy Vellu took over from him and held on to it for eight terms.

Parti Sosialis Malaysia’s Dr Michael D Jayakumar, the current MP for Sungai Siput, is soft spoken and well liked. In politics, however, the wise person often triumphs over the nice fellow. If Samy Vellu is fielded again for the seat, he is expected to win big, but he has said that he was not keen.

Sungai Siput went through a tremendous transformation when it was Samy Vellu’s seat. But MIC has not neglected it even after losing it. The party’s Sungai Siput office as well national leaders have been serving the constituency without fail.

Palanivel makes routine visits to the area to look after the diverse needs of the people and he can win the seat if he decides to stand there.But Sungai Siput will return to MIC even if the party president decides on Cameron Highlands for himself and shifts Devamany there.

Indeed, any candidate who is clean and has an excellent track record can win back the seat for MIC. For some time, MIC secretary-general S Murugesan was tipped to contest in Sungai Siput. Former deputy minister T Murugiah has also been speculated as a candidate for this constituency.

Teluk Kemang is another traditional MIC seat that fell in 2008. This seat was held by former party vice-president K Pathmanaban from 1974 to 1990, when S Sothinathan took over from him.

In 2008, Sothinathan was defeated by PKR’s Kamarul Bahrin Abbas, who garnered 23,348 votes against the MIC man’s 20,544 votes.

Pakatan Rakyat appears to believe that former MIC veteran G Muthupalaniappan’s entry into its midst will cause some problems to MIC in its bid to recapture Teluk Kemang. However, Negeri Sembilan MIC, Teluk Kemang MIC as well as Sothinathan himself have all been servicing the Teluk Kemang constituency well and the party is tipped to recapture the seat without much of a problem.

Down to earth

Another of the parliamentary seat that MIC lost in 2008 is Kota Raja. Then MIC Youth leader S Vikneswaran was defeated by a majority of 20,751 by Dr Siti Mariah Mahmud of PAS.

Dr Siti Mariah is a down-to-earth and simple person who mingles with the constituents freely without any protocol and restrictions. She is much respected for this reason, and MIC faces a tough battle to unseat her.

However, Vikneswaran who was active in NGOs for some time, is said to be working hard and is confident of his chances if he is fielded in Kota Raja. People aligned to him claim he has strong contacts with certain influential Umno leaders and that they would ensure his victory.

Kapar, too, was a MIC seat until the party’s women’s chief, M Komala Devi, was defeated by PKR’s S Manikavasagam in 2008.

Although MIC central working committee member A Saktivel is frequently seen in various functions held in Kapar, it will not be easy for the party to win back the seat from Manikavasagam, who is known for championing popular issues.

MIC’s GS Nijhar, who had won Subang in 2004, decided in 2008 to give way to the younger crop of leaders. Hence, S Murugesan was fielded against then PKR vice-president and prominent lawyer R Sivarasa. MIC lost by 6,000 votes.

But Murugesan is tipped to contest again, perhaps in Subang and perhaps in Sungai Siput. Another name mentioned for Subang is D Ravindran.

This urban seat is economically developed and people will vote for personality and a good track record rather than for a party.

MIC is also expected to swap some seats with other BN parties. This is a good idea if other component parties have better chances in traditional MIC seats and MIC has better chances in other areas.


The writer is an MIC member and the president of Malaysia Public Service Association. He is also the editor of Nayagankini.


Source : http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2012/09/19/things-are-looking-up-for-mic/