the fact is that most of the 3,000 who turned up were not party members but NGO representatives or former party members who have an axe to grind with Samy Vellu, reports The Edge.
Mugilan had expected 15,000 people to attend the rally, which was first scheduled to be held at the Putra World Trade Centre. The venue later changed to the Mines Convention Centre to defuse allegations that GAS was Umno-backed.According to a party insider, GAS failed because it could not shake off the perception of a link to Umno, which is headquartered at the PWTC."It is an act by people from outside the party who are trying to tell us what to do," The Edge quoted him as saying.
"Samy Vellu has set his date. We should let him leave on his own terms," the observer told the paper, adding that he was not surprised that many who attended the rally were not MIC members."Indians as a rule are emotional," said another party member. "MIC members will not take kindly to any attempt to remove their leader, especially if we think that Umno has something to do with it."
"Rather than back the dissenters, however right they may be, we would stick with the status quo," said another party member.
Great sense of indebtedness
However, he said Samy Vellu’s position would be untenable if deputy president G Palanivel and the vice presidents stand up against him."Any demand for him to leave earlier must come from the deputy president and vice-presidents. Then there is legitimacy," he said, adding that Samy Vellu would only be in trouble if he did not leave by September next year, as announced.An MIC vice-president said they are all aware of the sentiment against their president but there is a great sense of indebtedness that many feel towards him.
He said that they would take the soft approach rather than forcefully ask him to go.To date, Palanivel and the veeps - Dr S Subramaniam, S K Devamany and M Saravanan - have not broken ranks with Samy Vellu.
Former secretary-general S Murugesan, who openly criticised Samy Vellu, was given the boot on Sunday and replaced by Negri Sembilan chief T Rajagopalu.
Challenge facing successor
While the succession drama in MIC is being played out, other big issues are waiting to be addressed, The Edge further reports.While Samy Vellu has outdistanced both his contemporaries and opponents alike, the challenge that remains is whether those who would take over the party helm could bring change to the community.Above all, the question that begs for an answer is whether the MIC could swing the once secure Indian votes back to Barisan Nasional before the next general election.—
Source : http://www.malaysianmirror.com/
No comments:
Post a Comment