By picking Palanivel, isn't Umno apologizing to Samy Vellu

The recently-launched Gerakan Anti-Samy Vellu movement to dislodge the long-standing MIC president will fail “as sure as the sun will rise”, Indian leaders believe.“Whatever GAS, methane, propane or rocket fuel they use, Samy will stay put and Umno will have to continue to bow to him and his terms,” Padang Serai MP N Gobalakrishan told Malaysia Chronicle.


Indeed, Tuesday’s announcement that Samy’s favored successor Senator G Palanivel had been appointed Deputy Minister of Plantations, Industries and Commodities confirmed the fears swirling amongst MIC grassroots and the Indian community at large.“It is like an apology – this time from Umno to Samy. By not giving the cabinet post to Kamalanathan, it shows Umno is conceding to Samy’s demands and rewarding him for not insisting on fielding Palanivel at Hulu Selangor,” an MIC Youth leader said.

“So imagine, what chance does Mugilan have to kick Samy out? His claws are so entrenched in the MIC no one will be able to push him out until he himself is willing to go and he will do this on own his terms.”
Already, talk is buzzing in the MIC circles about Samy’s “retirement goodies”. Speculation is rife that Prime Minister Najib Razak has offered him a roving ambassadorship, but insiders say that is merely the “tip of the iceberg”. “That would be so typical of the BN - they just don’t listen to the people. When the Indians say they don’t want MIC or Samy or his Palanivel any more, BN cannot come up with a better solution. It must create GAS or dangle unhealthy incentives to get rid of him,” Gobalakrishnan said.

“Frankly, this is a waste of time. Much better if they all went to the ground and worked hard. If you serve the constituents sincerely instead of always of trying to go for the shortcuts, they will return to you.”
Like its Chinese counterpart MCA in the BN coalition, MIC has suffered an enormous drop in voter confidence due to perceptions that its top leaders were self-serving and worked hand-in-glove with Umno to enrich themselves. MIC won only two parliamentary seats in the 2008 general elections. It picked up its third at the Hulu Selangor by-election in April but only thanks to aggressive campaigning by Najib. On the advice of Umno, the BN president had insisted on fielding newcomer Kamalanathan

Source : http://malaysia-chronicle.blogspot.com/2010/06/by-picking-palanivel-isnt-umno.html#more