FULL REPORT Seri Kembangan: Although the turnout fell short of the 15,000 target, the organisers of the Gerakan Anti-Samy Vellu (GAS) campaign, however, believe it was a success.
The campaign's central figure V Mugilan said they managed to muster a crowd of more than 3,000 despite the alleged underhand tactics used by MIC president S Samy Vellu.
He claimed that the veteran politician spent about RM5 million to thwart the campaign.
"GAS has succeeded. Although many of our supporters were held up, this programme has been successful in pressuring Samy Vellu to step down,” he said.
Describing Samy Vellu as a liability, Mugilan said GAS will give him one week to relinquish his post.
The sacked former MIC Youth deputy chief also alleged that one of the campaign's leaders had gone missing, suggesting that he could have been "kidnapped".
Mugilan told FMT that he would need to look for the unnammed leader, who he said was tasked with the important job of bringing 5,000 people from the northern states, before lodging a police report.
"Buses from Kedah, Perak, Penang and Johor were stopped from coming here. People were waiting around for buses that did not come.
“They have used every possible tactic to stop this. But we are happy that we suceeded despite the odds," he said, adding that one person “was even bribed RM20,000.”
He claimed that if the rally was held at the Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC) as planned, the crowd would have been bigger.
Lunch, money and tour?
His detractors however claimed that many of those who attended the event were paid RM50, given lunch and promised a tour of Kuala Lumpur.
A more startling allegation was that a sizeable number of Indian nationals were also present but this could not be verified.
Mugilan also plans to launch a signature drive for all MIC members to prove that the majority of them want Samy Vellu out.
Among the notable figures at the event were sacked Central Working Committee (CWC) members KP Samy and G Kumar Amman, PJ Selatan division chief V. Subramaniam or Barat Maniam, MIC veteran G Govindarajoo and former MIED chief executive officer P Chitirakala.
Sandal incident causes a stir
During the event, which kicked off at 2.45pm, an elderly man caused a stir when he attached his sandal to a broomstick and started hitting a photograph of Samy Vellu.WP Velugopal, 62, said that he did so because "Samy Vellu was a corrupt leader".
"He cheated the government, he is a fake," thundered the senior citizen, who claimed that he was shortchanged by the president and has the evidence to prove it.
Mugilan later distanced himself from the incident, saying that it was the act of a frustrated individual and this was not part of the Indian culture.
Meanwhile, Govindarajoo, in his speech, urged Samy Vellu to step down and apologised to the Indian community for bringing the latter into politics.
"MIC has gone down the drain because of one fool," he added.
On the other hand, Chitirakala vowed to do all in her power to oust Samy Vellu, saying that she was the victim while he was the villian.
'Secret document' inked by Dr M
Earlier, V L Kanthan, the brother of former party president V Manickavasagam told the crowd that Manickavasagam never pressured previous party president VT Sambanthan to step down as alleged by Samy Vellu.
He said it was Samy Vellu, who was then the Youth chief, who launched a campaign to kick Sambanthan out, and now history is repeating itself.
Speaking to reporters after his speech, Barat Maniam showed the media a "secret document" that he claimed was signed by former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad affirming that MIED was set up for the Indian community and that Samy Vellu had no right to "steal"
Source : http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/
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